Young European talents on their way to Taormina
The most promising young European filmmakers will compete, from the 11th to the 18th of June, at the Taormina Film Fest. In the parallel sections, many significant national or international premieres are on the programme, such as the latest Costa-Gavras (The Ax), a disturbing morality tale with social overtones, the much-awaited Batman Begins by Christopher Nolan, and Dario Argento's new thriller, with the intriguing title, Ti piace Hitchcock? (Do you like Hitchcock?).
After a break of many years, the competition for first and second features finally reopens. Among the 12 contestants present in Taormina, European films are represented by, for example, Nordkraft by Ole Christian Madsen (Denmark) and Guy X, Saul Metzstein's second feature, a pacifist comedy reminiscent of Catch 22 and M*A*S*H, co-produced by the UK, Iceland and Canada. Among the first films, there are Bye Bye Blackbird by the French director Robinson Savary (a film produced in Luxembourg by Samsa Film), Hill 16 by the Irish Dermot Doyle, Apnea, by young Roberto Dordit (Italy). Two more Italian directors were selected, Gianpaolo Tescari, who is showing Gli occhi dell'altro and Carlo Nero, the son of the famous actor Franco Nero, who is screening The Fever, an English production starring his mother, the actress Vanessa Redgrave.
Besides Costa-Gavras, Argento, and Nolan's films, the section entitled 'Great cinema in Roman theatre' will screen The Games of Their Lives, a comedy in which David Anspaugh narrates the only game the United States ever won against the English football team at the World Cup, Incautos, by Miguel Bardem, a gangster-film starring Victoria Abril, and Schatten der Zeit, shot in India by Florian Gallenberger, who gave a German perspective on Bollywood, as well as The Shadowdancer (It-UK-Fr) by Brad Mirman, starring Harvey Keitel and Giancarlo Giannini, Ecuba by Giuliana Berlinguer and Irene Papas, as well as a portrait of the great script-writer Sergio Amidei by Ettore and Silvia Scola.
The traditional and very popular cinema lessons will this year be taught by Bob Rafelson, Malcolm McDowell, Hugh Hudson, Virna Lisi, Andie MacDowell, and Laura Morante.
(Translated from Italian)
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