TIFF Day 4 - Sunshine and Sex Dolls!

Sunday continued the trend of bright sunshine and balmy weather. After catching a program of short films in the late morning, Scot and I met Bruce to walk west on Queen St. to the Robert Bulger Gallery to attend the Opening Reception for Don McKellar’s art installation, IMAGINARY LOVERS. As we strolled down Queen Street, we serendipitously ran into Gil and Amanda who had arrived the evening before and invited them to come along. After a lengthy and surprisingly warm walk, we arrived at the Gallery (formerly Atom Egoyan’s Camera) and joined the party. Tracy introduced us to her good friend Caroline Gillis, with whom she has worked on stage (most notably the Off Broadway run of Daniel MacIvor’s play, ‘A Beautiful View’). Caroline would be recognizable to fans of ‘Twitch City,’ ‘Slings & Arrows,’ or MONKEY WARFARE. Don’s installation was comprised of a series of short films shot on cell phone featuring women all over the world sending message telling their boyfriends they missed them. Some Chlotrudis members might remember a pair of Don’t films, PHONE CALL FROM AN IMAGINARY GIRLFRIEND: INSTANBUL and PHONE CALL FROM AN IMAGINARY GIRLFRIEND: ANKARRA bookending one of our short film festivals. After complete the two initial films, Don continued to make these shorts during his travels, including stops in Wellington, New Zealand, Rio de Janeiro, Madrid, Regina and Montreal. The films are strangely touching and haunting, and utilize Don’s trademark humor to good effect. They are visually arresting, despite the limitations of shooting on cell phone. It was great to be able to see them as part of this installation.

The other non-film highlight of the day was my chance to finally meet the delightful Paprika Steen (who as you may recall was scheduled, but unable to attend our Chlotrudis Awards Ceremony earlier this year). I introduced myself after the screening, and she said she’d recognized me in the audience. (She gives a great Q&A!) We spoke for a few moments before she was rushed off, and she invited us to the APPLAUS party (which, if you can believe it, we were too exhausted to attend!) My hope is we are able to bring Paprika to Boston for Chlotrudis sometime in the future. She would be a terrific guest. Congratulations on your outstanding performance Paprika!

And now, on to the reviews!

Short Cuts Canada Programme 2
75 EL CAMINO
director: Sami Khan
THE TRANSLATOR
director: Sonya Di Rienzo
OUT IN THAT DEEP BLUE SEA
director: Kazik Radwanski (pictured right with Guy Maddin)
NIGHT MAYOR
director: Guy Maddin
VOLTA
director: Ryan Mullins
DE MOUVEMENT
director: Richard Kerr
SNOW HIDES THE SHADE OF FIG TREES
director: Samer Najari



Contrary to what you might think, I didn’t elect to see this program of short films because the new Guy Maddin short was featured (although that certainly was an added bonus). I really wanted to see the third film by Kazik Radwanski, Chlotrudis Short Film Festival alum. His debut short film, ASSAULT was a Chlotrudis selection in 2008. I’m always a little wary of the short film programs, because there are usually a couple of gems, and a couple of bombs, with some mediocrity filling out the rest. I am pleased to report that this year’s batch was the best selection of short films that I have seen in Toronto! Sami Khan’s 75 EL CAMINO is a moving film about getting older and the nostalgia of an old car and what it represents. In THE TRANSLATOR, Sonya De Rienzo subtitles the thoughts of various people on a subway ride, including a young couple who find themselves drifting apart. Kazik Radwanski completes his trilogy begun by ASSAULT and followed by PRINCESS MARGARET BLVD. with OUT IN THAT DEEP BLUE SEA, a poignant examination of middle age and the conflict between doing what you need to do and what you want to do. Guy Maddin is wacky and I just love him. In NIGHT MAYOR Guy invents an imaginative history for a real life friend, weaving humor, social commentary and Canadian history into a seamless fantasia. VOLTA by Ryan Mullins, explores the disappearance of the movie theatre, and what that means for a social life in this documentary about a little village in Africa. Richard Kerr’s DE MOUVEMENT is a visual collage of images plucked from historic trailers. The program ended powerfully with Samer Najari’s fantastic portrait of the immigrant experience in the snowy streets of Montreal in the film SNOW HIDES THE SHADE OF FIG TREES.

APPLAUS
director: Martin Pieter Zandvliet (pictured right with Paprika Steen)
cast: Paprika Steen; Michael Falch; Sara-Marie Maltha; Otto Leonardo Steen Rieks; Noel Koch-Søfeldt

In a tour de force performance, Danish actress, and Chlotrudis honoree Paprika Steen unleashes a powerful and fiery performance as an actress recovering from alcoholism. Thea’s addiction led to her divorce and loss of custody of her two young sons. Now on the road to recovery, Thea takes hesitant steps toward being a part of her children’s lives again. Her ex-husband is trying to help, but Thea’s impatience causes her to lash out in frustration, needing things to move more quickly because as she notes, she doesn’t drink anymore. As she feels her life spinning increasingly more out of control, she relies heavily on her caustic wit and biting intelligence. She lashes out in one moment, and then submits to logic and calm the next. It’s exhausting to watch, giving the viewer an idea of what it must be like to live it. The narrative is intercut with scenes of Thea playing Martha in ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’ on stage – scenes of Paprika actually performing the role in Denmark. The juxtaposition allows for insight into Thea’s character, and provides us with a nice twist at the film’s end.

While first time solo director Martin Pieter Zandvliet does a good job keeping things tightly focused on Thea, shooting her in unflattering lighting and in tight close-up as an unforgiving witness, he and his collaborator Anders Frithiof August fare less well with the screenplay, which doesn’t allow for much of a dramatic arc. That said, this film is all about Paprika Steen and her unflinching, exhilarating performance. Awarded the best actress award at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, this is a sure contender for a Chlotrudis award if it gets released in the U.S. While I would give Paprika’s performance 5 cats, the film as a whole gets 3 ½ cats.

AIR DOLL
director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
cast: Du-na Bae; Arata; Itsuji Itao

One day an inflatable air doll, a substitute for sexual pleasure, wakes up to find she has a heart. She is self-animated, self-aware, and filled with wonder as she discovers the world around her. On a meandering sojourn around the neighborhood she wanders into a video rental store and gets herself a job, carefully concealing the fact that she, in fact, made of plastic and filled with air. She returns home each night before her owner arrives from work, but soon grows tired of the sexual acts he performs with her and becomes more fascinated by the parade of humanity that she encounters each day; most particularly the young man with whom she works at the video store. Of course, as we all know, along with wonder and delight, life brings sadness, pain and heartbreak. After she accidentally tears a hole in her arm and her true nature is revealed to her co-worker, he hastily tapes her up and re-inflates her with his own breath. It is at this point that she truly learns what it means to be human, as she falls in love with her benefactor. Her further adventures lead her to an elderly man in the park on a respirator, a woman struggling against aging, a little girl and her harried father, and the man who created her.

Kore-eda is a master filmmaker, weaving elements of loneliness and alienation into this charming story about the creation of a new life. In parallel to the air doll’s inflatable nature, we see a series of humans who are empty inside, desperately seeking something to fill the void in their hearts. Duna Bae is magnificent as the innocent experiencing life for the first time. Her large eyes grow wider with each miraculous sight she sees, and she capably conveys the joy, confusion and pain of living with each move she makes. Despite the wacky and somewhat salacious premise, Kore-eda is such a life-affirming personality that you know you’re in for something special. 5 cats.

TIFF Day 2 - The ups and downs begin

Day two of the Toronto International Film Festival was jam packed with fun stuff... and movies too! The high point, of course, was getting to see our friends Don McKellar and Tracy Wright again. We met them for a lovely dinner at Terroni, on Adelaide and Church, and as an added bonus, Don brought the lovely Miranda July with him for a quick hello before she returned to her hotel room for some much needed relaxation. Don and Tracy are doing well, and are such sweethearts; it's always a joy to catch up with them. Don is as busy as ever, appearing in two films at the festival, and helping out at the Talent Lab again. Tracy has been doing some stagework, and will be jetting off to Belgium to work in October. Good for her!

Only other comments before hitting the reviews is to mention that the new venue (for me, anyway) is the AMC Theatre, a multi-level, multiplex that is just overwhelming. While the gigantic screens, stadium seating, high-tech sound systems, and wide rows are much-appreciated, I just get a weird feeling seeing these amazing independent and international films in that atmosphere. Huh... and I'm off to see a documentary about honeybees at the AMC this morning. That should be a trip. Now on to the reviews!

VISAGE (FACE)
director: Tsai Ming Liang
cast: Kang-sheng Lee; Fanny Ardant; Laetitia Casta; Jean-Pierre Léaud; Yi-Ching Lu

Drawing parallels between the chaos of making a film and that same unpredictability in life, Tsai Ming-liang has made his most far out and in many ways exciting movie to date. Kang, who we have come to know first as a watch salesman in WHAT TIME IS IT THERE? then as a porn star in THE WAYWARD CLOUD, is now a Taiwanese director working on a film in France. His procuder Fanny is doing her best to keep the over-the-top production on time and on budget while the lead actor and actress muddle through personal crises, or perhaps neuroses? On top of this, Kang suffers a personal crisis of his own and must return to Taiwan for a time.

Tsai uses his muse, Lee Kang-shen as his stand-in as is the norm, and it is certainlyl an interesting choice to see such a passive, emotionally remote character in charge of something as complicated as a movie set. The whole WHAT TIME IS IT THERE cast is back, including Yi-Ching Lu as Kang's mother, and Shaing-chyi Chen, although after the cirucmstances of THE WYAWARD CLOUD, it's surprising to think that she may be playing the same character. The film is fleshed out by a who's who of French talent across the decades, from Fanny Ardant to Mathieu Amalric to the incomparable Jeanne Moreau in one of the films many surprisingly hilarious scenes.

The director returns to the visually stunning technique he used to such masterful effect in WHAT TIME IS IT THERE? where he frames each shot and allows the action to move in and out of the camera's eye. While some scenes in this carefully structured film are dense and indecipherable, who cares when there is a sudden explosion of fatastical musical numbers, or static scenes of sudden hilarity? 4 1/2 cats

IF I KNEW WHAT YOU SAID
director: Mike Sandejas
cast: Zoe Sandejas; Romalito Mallari; Robert Seña; Adriana Agcaoili; Cherry Velarde Mactal; Bronson Escalderon

While certainly doing something different than what the festival circuit is used to regarding Philippine cinema, i.e. avoiding the slums and focusing on a more middle-class family, IF I KNEW WHAT YOU SAID ends up coming across like an after-school special that has it's sweet moments, but is fairly pedestrian even while telling a very personal and fascinating story. Niña is a high school student who plays in a rock & roll band, and after getting arrested once too often for starting fights, she is sent to a camp where hearing people and deaf people learn to communicate by working together. It is the hope that she will overcome her aggressive tendencies and learn to empathize at the camp. Also at the camp is Kiko, a deaf dancer who works with deaf children at the local school and attends the camp to help younger kids adjust. He and Niña don't get off to such a great start, but despite this, the two eventually become friends and Niña starts to develop an understanding of others, despite her inattentive, overbearing and borderline abusive parents. While Niña battles behavioral and eventually physical challenges, Kiko, who was abandoned when he was a child, is trying to connect to his mother. By the end of the film, lessons are learned, and our starwart leads move forward with life.

The acting by the two leads, Zoe Sandejas, the director's daughter who is in fact a pop musician, and Romalito Mallari, who is in fact a deaf dancer searching for his birth mother after having been abandoned, is pretty strong, particularly Mallari who is open and appealing onscreen. Unfortunately, this screenplay is just rife with potholes and writer/director Sandejas manages to hit most of them. 2 1/2 cats

I am going to post this now so I don't get too much farther behind. I will pick up soon with Friday night's film, FISH TANK, and move on to Saturday.

Egoyan, McKelllar and Polley on Tap for TIFF

The Toronto International Film Festival may have defied tradition by programming a non-Canadian film for opening night (that film is Jon Amiel's CREATION starring Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly) but that doesn't mean the Canadian powerhouses won't be represented. I'm very happy to see Atom Egoyan, Don McKellar and Sarah Polley all have new films at this year's fest according to the The Toronto Star.

Atom Egoyan's CHLOE is an erotic thriller starring Julianne Moore and Liam Neeson, based on a French film called NATHALIE from 2003. Moore stars as a suspicious wife who hires a prostitute to test her husband's fidelity.

Don McKellar plays a diplomat living in India in Dilip Mehta's WHAT'S COOKING, STELLA? And if that name sounds familiar, it's because his sister is Canadian filmmaker Deepa Mehta, director of WATER, EARTH and FIRE, not to mention BOLLYWOOD HOLLYWOOD. Deepa co-produced and co-wrote WHAT'S COOKING, STELLA?

And in perhaps the most intriguing news, Sarah Polley co-stars with Jared Leto in MR. NOBODY, a Belgian science fiction movie that spans centuries. Check out the trailer below.

Interview with Atom Egoyan

GreenCine has a nice interview with Atom Egoyan about his new film ADORATION (which opens in Boston on Friday.) There's a really neat exchange about why Atom gives Arsinee roles that are difficult to empathize with. I especially like what he says about seeing her in other people's films.

Scot Dicovers "Hirsute" Filmmaker

It's amazing what you'll find, Googling mindlessley on a Saturday morning. (Don't ask what I Googled, by the way.) I was unexpectedly redirected to Logo Online where I watched "Hirsute", a 14-minute short film by A.J. Bond. Bond, a Canadian (go figure) actor and film editor, apparently has launched his directing career with this fascinating low-tech sci-fi short and the results are fantastic. I've always been a fan of really smart time travel stories and this film reminds me of one of my favorite books in the genre, The Man Who Folded Himself by the legendary David Gerrold. (Yeah, the guy who wrote the Star Trek "Trouble With Tribbles" episode.) Only "Hirsute" is more cynical. And that's not a bad thing.

Bond seems like a pretty intelligent guy and I'm pleased to see that he was in Chlotrudis friend Gary Burns' Kitchen Party, not to mention providing the voice of "Bad Hat" Pepito in the Madeleine cartoon. I wonder if we should have him down for the awards to speak about editing. Did I mention that he's Canadian?

I don't usually watch much Logo, as films set out to be "gay films" are usually pretty disappointing. But maybe I'll have to start flipping past that channel more often.

Check out the trailer below, and if you like it, watch the whole thing at Logo Online or on IMDB.

TIFF Opening Night Film Announced

Beth, you picked the right movie, but not the right night! Paul Gross' PASSCHENDAELE will open this year's Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday, September 4. Gross, well-known to American audiences for his roles on television's "Slings & Arrows" and "Due South," and to Chlotrudis members for his roles in the films WILBY WONDERFUL and MEN WITH BROOMS, directed, produced, and stars in this historical romantic drama set during World War I. Gross plays Michael Dunne -- a man injured in France who comes home to Calgary. However, a romance with a nurse inspires him to go back to France to protect her younger brother, who is embroiled in the third battle of Ypres, otherwise known as Passchendaele.

TIFF traditionally opens with a high-profile Canadian film. Last year Jeremy Podeswa took the coveted spot with his FUGITIVE PIECES. Gross' PASSCHENDAELE will make it two historical drama in a row. Beth had pegged this film as the festival closer, with Egoyan's ADORATION as a possible opener. This is the first announcement for this year's festival which runs September 4 - 13. The official website for this year's festival will go live on June 27th. Thanks to Cinematical for the tip!

Cannes 2008 Line-Up Announced

Twitch has the first official line-up announcement for the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, and there are some interesting films from the Chlotrudis point-of-view. ADORATION is Atom Egoyan's first film since 2005's WHERE THE TRUTH LIES. In his latest work, Atom shifts his attention to high schoolers and in a logical progression from his fascination with video, he looks at how kids' relationships are affected by the Internet. ADORATION stars Scott Speedman, Rachel Blancard, and Arsinée Khanjian. Charlie Kaufman, writer of such mind-bending films as ADAPTATION and BEING JOHN MALKOVICH, will be screening his directorial debut, SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK. Other Chlotrudis-worthy directors include Nuri Blige Ceylan (CLIMATES), Arnaud Desplechin (KINGS & QUEEN), Lucretia Martel (THE HOLY GIRL), Wim Wenders (WINGS OF DESIRE), Ji-Woon Kim (A TALE OF TWO SISTERS), Jia Zhangke (THE WORLD) and Stephen Soderbergh (BUBBLE).

Here's the full list:

Competition
Nuri Bilge Ceylan - Three Monkeys (Turkey-France-Italy)
Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne - Le Silence De Lorna (France-Belgium)
Arnaud Desplechin - A Christmas Story (France)
Clint Eastwood - Changeling (US)
Atom Egoyan - Adoration (Canada)
Ari Folman - Waltz With Bashir (Israel)
Philippe Garrel - La Frontiere De L’Aube (France)
Matteo Garrone - Gomorra (Italy)
Charlie Kaufman - Synecdoche, New York (US)
Eric Khoo - My Magic (Singapore)
Lucretia Martel - La Mujer Sin Cabeza (Argentina-Spain)
Brillante Mendoza - Serbis (The Philippines)
Kornel Mondruczo - Delta (Hungary-Germany)
Walter Salles & Daniela Thomas - Linha De Passe (Brazil)
Paolo Sorrentino - Il Divo (Italy)
Pablo Trapero - Leonera (Argentina-South Korea)
Wim Wenders - The Palermo Shooting (Germany)
Jia Zhangke - 24 City (China)
Steven Soderbergh - Che (US-Spain-France)—one four-hour competion title comprised of Guerrilla and The Argentine

Out of competition
Steven Spielberg - Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (US)
Mark Osborne and John Stevenson - Kung Fu Panda (US)
Ji-Woon Kim - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korean)
Woody Allen - Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Spain-US)

Special screenings
Marina Zenovich - Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (US)
Wong Kar-wai - Ashes Of Time Redux (Hong Kong-China-Taiwan)
Daniel Leconte - C’est Dur D’etre Aime Par Des Cons (France)
Marco Tullio Giordana - Sangue Pazzo (Italy-France)
Terence Davies - Of Time And The City (UK)

Midnight Screenings
Emir Kusturica - Maradona (Spain)
Jennifer Lynch - Surveillance (US)
Hong-Jin Na - The Chaser (South Korea)

Take a look at the trailer for BLINDNESS

So a lot has already been said here and here about BLINDNESS, the new film due out this year by Fernando Meirelles, adapted from a Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Jose Saramago. Lots of people are looking forward to Meirelles' follow-up to CITY OF GOD. Others are excited about Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, or Gael Garcia Bernal, three of the more well-known cast members. Of course, Chlotrudis is all over BLINDNESS because it was adapted for the screen by our pal, and Chlotrudis Advisory Board member, Don McKellar, who also appears in the film, as does our other Canadian pal, Tracy Wright!(And to sweeten the Chlotrudis punch just that much more, it also features appearances by Sandra Oh, Maury Chaykin, Martha Burns (form "Slings & Arrows"), AFTER LIFE's Yusuke Iseya, Susan Coyne (also from "Slings & Arrows"), and Chlotrudis Award winner Nadia Litz! What more could you possibly ask for?

How about a creepy trailer? While you're vibrating with anticipation about everything I just told you, take a peek at the trailer for this film which is due to open this fall in the U.S. Originally we had thought the film would premiere at Cannes (and it still might) but it sure looks like they're setting it up for Toronto as well. Whooee! Wouldn't that be fun?

An Eerie Pre-Chlotrudis Calm

It's the day before the 14th Annual Chlotrudis Awards, and aside from waking up earlier than I'd hoped, I'm strangely calm about the whole affair. (Okay, maybe I'm still a little concerned about the two musical numbers which will have final rehearsals tomorrow afternoon before the show.) Perhaps now having done this for nine years (publicly) things just move pretty smoothly. The voting is done (for the most part) and we've got our winners. The speeches are written, the multi-media is wrapped up, and the guests will start arriving today.

I'm very excited about our Career-so-far Award winner this year. One of the joys of honoring a deserving and often under-appreciated actor or filmmaker at the Awards is in preparation for their arrival I go through their body of work and get reminded of the reasons we are honoring them in the first place. Such was the case with this year's guest, Alberta Watson. I knew Alberta Watson was a good choice for this year's award just from the several films that immediately sprang to mind when we considered her. What I discovered was those films were just a small sampling of the terrific work this actress has shared with us over the years. Alberta enjoys an extensive film and television career, and she seems like she's going to be a lot of fun as well. You can find out for yourself by joining us tomorrow night at the Ceremony.

So I hope to see many of you local readers at the Brattle Theatre tomorrow, Sunday, March 30, 5 p.m. Chlotrudis Awards is a decidedly unique experience, one that most movie buffs know not to miss. Tickets are $20/$15 for members of the Brattle or Chlotrudis. Hope to see you there!

Great Interview with Ellen Page on NPR

Ellen Page... Ellen Page... Are we tired of reading/hearing about Ellen Page? No! As many people south of the 54'40 don't know, Chlotrudis discovered Ellen Page in the U.S, awarding her with the Breakout Award in 2005, before HARD CANDY or X-MEN: THE LAST STAND were released. We co-presented the still-unreleased AMERICAN CRIME with the Provincetown International Film Festival which starred Ellen and Catherine Keener earlier this year. Now with the imminent release of the terrific Ivan Reitman comedy JUNO, Page is poised to really break out to a wider audience. Take a listen to this wonderful NPR interview with this talented actress.

THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS Official Trailer

So I haven't seen a U.S. distributor pick this one up yet (what are you waiting for?), but my hope is that if JUNO is a smash, THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS might have a shot. This was my top film of the Toronto International Film Festival. It stars the amazingly talented Ellen Page, who is about to become a star, and who I told in Toronto Chlotrudis was totally taking credit for her success in the States (which she was completely cool about). I don't know when you'll get to see THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS in the States (hopefully when we co-present it at the IFFB? Brian? Nancy? Adam?) but here's the nifty trailer. Oh, it's directed by that talented Canadian director, Bruce McDonald.

A couple more words (and you know they're not the last) on BLINDNESS

So filming on Fernando Meirelles' BLINDNESS continues in Uruguay and Brazil next week. We got the inside scoop from Don McKellar (who adapted the screenplay) last week in Toronto. As you probably know from reading this earlier blog post (or this one), I'm very excited about BLINDNESS, having read the book, and loving the terrific international (and fairly heavily Canadian) cast. BLINDNESS became even more of a can't wait for me last week when I found out from Tracy Wright (pictured left) that she is scheduled scheduled to appear in the film as originally reported, despite not appearing on the Internet Movie Database's cast list. What's more (and I hope this isn't a trade secret) but Tracy is going to appear as a blonde! That's right... she decided she wants to bleach her hair for the role! I. Can't. Wait.

So anyway, Fernando Meirelles has a blog and he's talking about the shooting of BLINDNESS. Unfortunatley, it's all in Portuguese. Fortunately, Twitch has posted Fernando's latest post translated into English! Fernando talks about how Sandra Oh (yep, another great Canadian) got involved in the production. Go read it!

And could someone please add Tracy Wright to the cast list on imdb?

TIFF Starts off with 2 Docs... sort of

As promised, here's a look at the first two films I caught at the Toronto International Film Festival on day 1. I'm just back from my first early morning box office run and things ran smoothly. I was 9th in line, and most of the people in front of me were a little too... energetic for my sleep-addled senses. Ah, the enthusiasm and uncertainty of the young. I've got three movies lined up for today, and the last one is a 9:15 p.m. show, so I probably won't review them until tomorrow (gotta get to bed so I can make the sunrise trip tomorrow morning!) Still, my schedule is filling in. While I don't have tickets for anything yet tomorrow, I've got most of my other tickets!

HOLLYWOOD CHINESE (USA; 89 min.) directed by Arthur Dong

Accomplished documentarian Dong has won acclaim for his earlier films, COMING OUT UNDER FIRE, LICENSED TO KILL, and FAMILY FUNDAMENTALS. He's back with a film that he's been working on for 7 - 8 years, HOLLYWOOD CHINESE, a look at the portrayal of the Chinese, and the opportunities for Chinese American actors and filmmakers in Hollywood films from the earliest days to today. Dong taps a wide array of Chiense-Americans to discuss this topic, from actor/filmmaker Joan Chen to author Amy Tan. The list of notables keeps coming: Nancy Kwan, Ang Lee, Justin Lin, Wayne Wang, B. D. Wong and Henry David Hwang. He also talks to non-Chinese actors who played Chinese like Christopher Lee and Luise Rainer who won an Oscar for her performance in THE GOOD EARTH. Rainer, who looked to be in her 90's, commented on the fact that in today's Hollywood, everything has to be so exact: if you're playing Chinese, you must be Chinese, if you're playing a tall man, you must be a tall man, but it wasn't like that in her day. You were playing a part, it didn't matter their nationality.

Perhaps the most interesting part of Dong's film was a look at the earliest days of Hollywood and the lost work of actress/filmmaker Marion Wong and her 1916 silent film THE CURSE OF QUON GWON. Dong speaks to Wong's three daughters and they tell the tale of her secret success that had become lost in history. Now fortunately, more people will hear of it. Nancy Kwan tells of her breakout success in THE WORLD OF SUZIE WONG, and her sudden celebrity after appearing in the film adaptation of Rodgers & Hammerstein's THE FLOWER DRUM SONG. Joan Chen discusses the difficulty of capitalizing on t her success in Bertolucci's Oscar-winning THE LAST EMPEROR, and how she had to leave Hollywood to make her directorial debut, XIU XIU: THE SENT DOWN GIRL. Justin Lin tells how his slightly controversial directorial debut, BETTER LUCK TOMORROW spun into a Hollywood foray directing THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT.

While Dong does a fine job exploring his topic, the pacing seems a little bit off, and this genre of film has been done so many times with women in Hollywood, gays in Hollywood, African-Americans in Hollywood, etc., that it's very difficult to do something new and original. A delightful, post-film Q&A featured the director and special guest Nancy Kwan who is in town for a discussions screening of THE FLOWER DRUM SONG.

MY WINNIPEG (Canada; 2007) directed by Guy Maddin
starring: Ann Savage, Louis Negin, Darcy Fehr, Amy Stewart

What a delightful evening in the Wintergarden theatre spent enjoying the world premiere of Guy Maddin's pseudo-documentary MY WINNIPEG. Maddin was challenged by the Documentary channel to make a doc on his hometown of Winnipeg, and Maddin being Maddin utilized his considerable talents to transform the story of the heart of the heart of Canada into one of his fantastic, surreal signature films. While telling the tale of this cold, northern city, Maddin leans heavily on nostalgia, both his own and the the collective population's, delving into the personal to explore how growing up with his family in this city shaped his psyche.

In addition to the exploration of the personal, Maddin brings in two other threads to flesh out his tale. In dreamlike sequences reminiscent of early Russian films, Winnipeg likens the peopls of Winnipeg to sleepwalkers, focusing on one particular man standing in for himself, on a train trying to escape the city but ever being drawn back. He also touches on some of the key moments of the city's history giving the non-Winnipegger a strong if perhaps skewed look at its origins and upbringing.

Looking at Maddin's upbringing in the context of MY WINNIPEG, it becomes clear where the themes for his movie come from. The loneliness and isolation of THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD, the bizarre beauty parlor and hockey shenanigans of COWARDS BEND THE KNEE and the watchful mother and distant father of BRAND UPON THE BRAIN are all in strong evidence in MY WINNIPEG. Classic film noir star Ann Savage provides a delightful turn as Maddin's mother, adding both camp humor and a sense of danger to Maddin's memories. As an added treat, the premiere featured live narration from Maddin himself, an experience that will not be repeated if the filmmaker has anything to say about it.

On a side note, it's great to see Canadian filmmakers out in force to support their fellows. In the audience were Chlotrudis Advisory Board member Patricia Rozema, and many other Chlotrudis pals, including Don McKellar, Tracy Wright, Nadia Litz, and Reg Harkema. I chatted with Tracy and Nadia post-film and can attest to high marks all around.

Egoyan Tackles ADORATION

Telefilm Canada has announced the financing of Atom Egoyan's seventh feature film, to be titled ADORATION. Billed as a teen drama that "will examine how kids redefine themselves through the Internet," ADORATION actually sounds a good deal more complex than that. Add to the teen drama, a newsstory about a man and his pregnant girlfriend who try to get a bomb on a plane to Israel, and the way in which Simon, a 17-year-old high school student retells the same story on the web using his own family as a backdrop. The ramifications of Simon's actions are much more widespread and intense than he could have imagined.

For ADORATION, Egoyan has reteamed with Robert Lantos, who co-produced six of his previous films including WHERE THE TRUTH LIES and ARARAT. No word on casting, ADORATION is set to begin filming immediately following the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

BLINDNESS Gets Even More Intriguing

Mewsings reported earlier about BLINDNESS, the currently-in-production feature directed by Fernando Meirelles (CITY OF GOD), and adapted from José Saramago's award-winning novel by our Chlotrudis-buddy Don McKellar. I'm currently reading the novel, and it's going to be pretty intense when they bring this to the big screen. Blindness tells the story of an unnamed city whose inhabitants start to go inexplicably blind. Julianne Moore has the leading role, and as reported before, Mark Ruffalo has stepped in to replace Daniel Craig in the male lead.

BLINDNESS is currently shooting in Guelph, Ontario, and a quick check of the Internet Movie Database reveals a pretty compelling, international, supporting cast. In addition to Moore and Ruffalo, there are a couple more names from the movie biz including Danny Glover, and Gael Garcia Bernal, who was last seen in the Chlotrudis-nominated leading role in THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP. I was also pleased to see another past-Chlotrudis honoree getting a role; Canadian mainstay Maury Chaykin. Don McKellar gets a brief but pivotal role as "The Thief." Fans of Hirozaku Koreeda will be pleased to see Yusuke Iseya, one of the leads from his beloved AFTER LIFE in the role of the "first blind man." Finally, for fans of the Canadian television dramedy "Slings & Arrows" (and there are a handful of you out there) two delightfully talented actresses from that show, Martha Burns and Susan Coyne also have roles.

The one name I didn't see in the credits who we were hoping would be involved is Chlotrudis honoree Tracy Wright. Hopefully there is something bigger and better in her future.

Independent Film Festival of Boston Announces Its Line-Up

With the kick-off just over a month away, the Independent Film Festival of Boston has announced the impressive line-up for its 5th Annual Festival. I'm truly looking forward to MONKEY WARFARE, Reg Harkema's look at aging hipsters in Toronto that stars recent Chlotrudis guests Don McKellar and Tracy Wright. In a similar Canadian vein, I can't wait to check out Sarah Polley's feature narrative directorial debut, AWAY FROM HER. Hal Hartley is back with FAY GRIM, a sequel of sorts to HENRY FOOL. As has been the case in the past, the IFFB offers an outstanding batch of documentaries as well, with PROTAGONIST leading the pack for me... that's Jessica Yu's follow up to Chlotrudis nominee IN THE REALM OF THE UNREAL. Go check out the list!

Chlotrudis Guests Don and Tracy Open SXSW

Over at GreenCine Daily, there's a report on Opening Night at SXSW which features Reg Harkema's MONKEY WARFARE, starring this year's Chlotrudis guests Don McKellar and Tracy Wright. Chlotrudis Board members Beth Curran and Nancy Campbell caught MONKEY WARFARE in Toronto, and through Nancy and Chlotrudis member Brian Tamm's efforts, we will be lucky enough to catch this film in April at the Indepedent Film Festival of Boston. With 2006 being a slight year for Canadian films, here's hoping that 2007 yields a better batch. MONKEY WARFARE also stars Nadia Litz, who won a Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress way back in 2001 for her work in THE FIVE SENSES.

Speaking of SXSW, Chlotrudis members Ned Hinkle, Gil Cordova, and Amanda Doran are all enjoying the festival this week. Let's hope they see some terrific new films to bring to Boston!

Twitch City and an Unofficial Awards Announcement!

A few weeks ago, Scot reported to the Chlotrudis membership that our beloved Canadian TV sitcom, "Twitch City," was finally being released in the U.S. (it was finally released in Canada last fall). Now it hasn't yet appeared in Netflix, but it is available for purchase over at Amazon. We were wondering if the commentary on the U.S. version would be the same as the Canadian, and judging from the description on Amazon, it does sound like it will be. This is actually an exciting bit of news for Chlotrudis. The commentary is done by Don McKellar, this year's Chlotrudis special guest, and lead actor from the show, who calls his co-stars on the phone for assistance. When he reaches Daniel McIvor, past Chlotrudis "Body-of-Work" Award winner, the two have a rather amusing conversation while watching the debut episode. When they get to the "job wheel" scene (one that Chlotrudis members should know well) Daniel actually starts talking about coming to Boston to receive an award for his body of work, and the fact that we showed this clip. It's pretty cool and pretty funny, even though he doesn't mention us by name.

In related news, we have now confirmed our second guest for the 13th Annual Chlotrudis Awards coming up soon. This is an unofficial announcement, as a press release will follow, but I'm just so excited I couldn't contain myself any longer. She's got "cat-i-tude!" Tracy Wright will be honored at the Awards Ceremony for her "career-so-far!" Tracy is best known in the U.S. for being part of the Chlotrudis Awards-winning Ensemble Cast of ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW. She has done extensive work in Canadian film and tv, including the wacky Dizelle in the afore-mentioned "Twitch City," a major part in Don McKellar's ensemble piece, LAST NIGHT, and a lead role in the upcoming MONKEY WARFARE, co-starring McKellar and Nadia Litz. She most recently appeared off-Broadway in "A Beautiful View" at the Public Theatre, a play written and directed by Daniel McIvor (see how synchronistic this post is?) Tracy Wright makes every movie she is in better, and I can't wait to meet her. Look for the official word on the front page of this website very soon.

McDonald and Page Score in Berlin

Canadian filmmaker Bruce McDonald's latest film THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS scored a distribution deal at the Berlin Film Festival this week. This experimental film stars busy Chlotrudis-winner Ellen Page, who is nominated this year for her compelling performance in HARD CANDY. To tell his story of a girl struggling with puberty, McDonald takes the film title literally by using fragments of images, often many at a time, to visually represent what Tracey is experiencing. McDonald film work has been little seen in America (HIGHWAY 61, DANCE ME OUTSIDE, HARD CORE LOGO, PICTURE CLAIRE), but Chlotrudis members will definitely know him for some of his television work ("Twitch City," "DeGrassi: the Next Generation," "Queer as Folk").

THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS has been picked up by Canada's Odeon Films for distribution in Canada and Germany. Here's hoping it makes an appearance south of the border. With Page getting some attention with HARD CANDY, and the recent Sundance premiere of AN AMERICAN CRIME, in which she co-stars with Catherine Keener, perhaps THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS has a chance of getting U.S. distribution. THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS is based on a novel by Maureen Medved who also wrote the screenplay.