31/01/2007

Music plays an important role in several titles that premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, including two in the Tiger Competition: the bittersweet Finnish comedy Rock ‘n’ Roll Never Dies and the dark and funny Flemish Brusselmans adaptation Ex Drummer [+see also:
trailer
film profile].

Rock ‘n’ Roll Never Dies, directed by newcomer Juha Koiranen, is the story of Tiger, an amateur guitar player nearing 40 who still lives with his parents. Through a playful structure that includes flashbacks, stories-within-stories and telling lyrics, we get to know the kind-hearted creature played to perfection by Samuli Edelmann. Though too long, this sincere portrait of a lovable loser is hard to resist.

It was produced on a €1m budget by Filmtotal (who also handle sales), with backing from the Finnish Film Foundation. It was released in Finland in December through FS Film.

Belgian director Koen Mortier’s debut Ex Drummer premieres in Flemish cinemas today and will be released in the Netherlands in April, both through A-film. It had its world premiere earlier this week at Rotterdam and is sold internationally by Wide Management.

An adaptation of a novel by love-him-or-hate-him writer Herman Brusselmans, Mortier nevertheless make the material his own, incorporating amazing special effects and visuals and excellent music in his nihilistic story of three handicapped musicians and an increasingly intrusive writer who becomes their drummer.

The IFFR also hosted the world premiere of Forever Never Anywhere (Immer nie am Meer), a hilarious character comedy from Antonin Svoboda. No rock music here, but instead a provincial entertainer with an accordion and two brothers-in-law who get stuck in a car in the woods and are assaulted by strange outside forces. The film was produced by Coop 99 (who also handle sales) and will be released in Austria in March through Filmladen.