Saturday, December 31, 2011

Random Musings - December 2011

Random Musings of the Month

Hello and welcome to another of my Random Musings.  A monthly roundup of various thoughts and things that don't fit into my usual daily posts.

Even though this is the last one for 2011, I'm not going to do a lengthy recap and just report on what went on over the past month.

You may or may not have noticed, but I've been working on a few cosmetic touches here and there, mostly minor things, but I think they improve the overall look of the blog.  Changes to the menu at the top, and the navigation bar at the bottom, and a change of the default post font from Corbel to Verdana, which hopefully makes the text more readable.

Earlier this month, I also added a dedicated Best New Films page that automatically updates itself as new films are tagged with the Best New Film tag.  I also used that code to make a Movies of the Month page, and have some more ideas to expand on that in the future.

Friday, December 30, 2011

Every Young Man (1966)

Every Young Man • Kazdý mladý muz (1966)
Every Young Man • Kazdý mladý muz (1966)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Director: Pavel Jurácek
Starring:Pavel Landovský, Ladislav Jakim, Hana Ruzicková, Ivan Vyskocil
Language: Czech
Duration: 83 min.
Rating: 7.4  

Summary:
A narrative diptych contrasting the dreams and aspirations of young men, barely adults, with the reality of the socialist army.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Montevideo, God Bless You! (2010)

Montevideo, God Bless You! • Montevideo, bog te video (2010)
Montevideo, God Bless You! • Montevideo, bog te video Монтевидео, Бог те видео (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Dragan Bjelogrlic
Starring: Milos Bikovic, Petar Strugar, Nina Jankovic, Danina Jeftic
Language: Serbian, Bulgarian
Duration: 140 min.
Rating: 6.2  

Summary:
A story about a team that decides to follow a dream that takes them on a journey to the First World Football Championship in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1930. A dream that allows them to become true stars and living legends.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

The Last Man on Earth (2011)

The Last Man on Earth • L'ultimo terrestre (2011)
The Last Man on Earth • L'ultimo terrestre (2011)

Genre: Sci-Fi / Drama
Director: Gian Alfonso Pacinotti
Starring: Anna Bellato, Teco Celio, Ugo De Cesare, Gabriele Spinelli, Luca Marinelli
Language: Italian
Duration: 100 min.
Rating: 6.1  

Summary:
A story seen through the eyes of a seemingly misogynist man with only a desire for solitude and routine, that takes place during the last week before the arrival of an extraterrestrial civilization on Earth.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Joseph Kilian (1965)

Joseph Kilian • Postava k podpírání (1965)
Joseph Kilian • Postava k podpírání (1965)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Short / Drama
Director: Pavel Jurácek, Jan Schmidt
Starring: Pavel Bartl, Pavel Silhánek, Stanislav Michler
Language: Czech
Duration: 38 min.
Rating: 8.2  

Summary:
An absurd Kafkaesque view of life under the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. 

Monday, December 26, 2011

Violeta (2011)

Violeta • Violeta se fue a los cielos (2011)
Violeta • Violeta se fue a los cielos (2011)

Genre: Biography
Director: Andrés Wood
Starring: Francisca Gavilán, Gabriela Aguilera, Daniel Antivilo, Stephaina Barbagelata
Language: Spanish, French
Duration: 110 min.
Rating: 7.7  

Summary:
The remarkable life story of Chilean composer, songwriter, folklorist, ethnomusicologist and visual artist Violetta Parra.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Joyeux Noël (2005)

Joyeux Noël (2005)
Joyeux Noël (2005)

Genre: Drama
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: Diane Kruger, Benno Fürmann, Guillaume Canet, Gary Lewis, Dany Boon
Language: French, German, English, Latin
Duration: 116 min.
Rating: 7.5  

Summary:
The year is 1914, and as The Great War continues to rage across the European countryside, four individuals stuck on the front lines find themselves changed forever by a momentous event.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

We Have a Pope (2011)

We Have a Pope • Habemus Papam (2011)
We Have a Pope • Habemus Papam (2011)

Genre: Drama / Comedy
Director: Nanni Moretti
Starring: Michel Piccoli, Jerzy Stuhr, Nanni Moretti, Margherita Buy
Language: Italian, Latin, German, English, Spanish, Polish, French
Duration: 102 min.
Rating: 7.3  

Summary:
The newly elected Pope suffers a panic attack just as he is due to appear on St Peter's balcony to greet the faithful, who have been patiently awaiting the conclave's decision. His advisors, unable to convince him he is the right man for the job, seek help from a renowned psychoanalyst (and atheist). But his fear of the responsibility suddenly thrust upon him is one that he must face on his own.

Friday, December 23, 2011

The Shop on Main Street (1965)

The Shop on Main Street • Obchod na korze (1965)
The Shop on Main Street • Obchod na korze (1965)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Ján Kadár, Elmar Klos
Starring: Idá Kaminská, Jozef Króner, Hana Slivková Martin Hollý
Language: Slovak, Yiddish
Duration: 125 min.
Rating: 8.1  

Summary:
Slovakia during WWII. Tono lives a poor life, but the authorities appoint him the Aryan controller of a Jewish widow's little button shop. She is old and confused and thinks that he is only looking for employment and hires him. Tono and the old woman form a friendship, but when the order goes out that all Jews are to be rounded up, he is forced to make a difficult decision.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Sonny Boy (2011)

Sonny Boy (2011)
Sonny Boy (2011)

Genre: Drama
Director: Maria Peters
Starring: Ricky Koole, Sergio Hasselbaink, Angelo Arnhem, Daniel van Wijk
Language: Dutch, German
Duration: 130 min.
Rating: 6.0  

Summary:
The true story of the relationship between Waldemar Nods, a 19-year-old student from Suriname, and Rika van der Lans, a married Dutch woman in her 40s, and mother of 4 children. The pair meet in the 1920s, fall in love, and Rika becomes pregnant soon thereafter, causing a scandal with far-reaching consequences, leading up to World War II.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

The Four Times (2010)

The Four Times • Le quattro volte (2010)
The Four Times • Le quattro volte (2010)

Best New Film
Genre: Drama
Director: Michelangelo Frammartino
Starring: Giuseppe Fuda, Nazareno Timpano, Bruno Timpano, Artemio Vellone
Language: None
Duration: 88 min.
Rating: 8.3  

Summary:
A poetic look at the cycles of nature and life through a frail old man's struggle to continue his goat herding existence, the birth and life of a baby goat, and the fate of one tall tree.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Loves of a Blonde (1965)

Loves of a Blonde • Lásky jedné plavovlásky (1965)
Loves of a Blonde • Lásky jedné plavovlásky (1965)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director: Milos Forman
Starring: Hana Brejchová, Vladimír Pucholt, Vladimír Mensík, Ivan Kheil, Milada Jezková
Language: Czech
Duration: 90 min.
Rating: 8.5  

Summary:
Andula is a young factory worker from a small town where because of the draft, the girls outnumber the boys 16 to 1.  She catches the eye of and is seduced by a jazz pianist from Prague hired to play at a gathering to boost local morale. 

Monday, December 19, 2011

The Colors of the Mountain (2010)

The Colors of the Mountain • Los colores de la montaña (2010)
The Colors of the Mountain • Los colores de la montaña (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Carlos César Arbeláez
Starring: Hernán Mauricio Ocampo, Nolberto Sánchez, Genaro Aristizábal, Hernán Méndez
Language: Spanish
Duration: 90 min.
Rating: 7.8  

Summary:
While the adults in their lives try to avoid both the armed military and the guerrilla rebels fighting each other in the area, Manuel and his friend Julian play soccer any chance they get. When their new soccer ball gets kicked onto a minefield, Manuel, Julian and their albino friend Poca Luz do everything in their power to recover their prized belonging, an essential part of their everyday lives and dreams.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Intimate Lighting (1965)

Intimate Lighting • Intimní osvetlení (1965)
Intimate Lighting • Intimní osvetlení (1965)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Ivan Passer
Starring: Karel Blazek, Zdenek Bezusek, Vera Kresadlová, Jan Vostrcil
Language: Czech
Duration: 72 min.
Rating: 9.1  

Summary:
In a small town, two former classmates are reunited, one is a successful cellist in the philharmonic orchestra, the other a music teacher in a rural school who plays the trumpet at funerals...

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Dead Man (1995)

Dead Man (1995)
Dead Man (1995)


Genre: Western, Fantasy
Director: Jim Jarmusch
Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen, John Hurt, Robert Mitchum
Language: English, Cree, Blackfoot
Duration: 121 min.
Rating: 8.4  

Summary:
On the run after murdering a man, accountant William Blake encounters a strange Indian named Nobody who prepares him for his journey into the spiritual world.

Friday, December 16, 2011

69th Golden Globe Awards (2012) Foreign Film Nominees

Yesterday, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced the nominees for this year's 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards.  The ceremony hosted by Ricky Gervais will be held on Sunday, January 15, 2012 starting at 20:00 EST at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.

I know every blog and their dog has already posted the same copy pasted list so I'll spare you all that and just talk about the category this blog is primarily concerned with, the Foreign Language Film category.

Since 1986, when the category was changed from Best Foreign Film to Best Foreign Language Film, up until last years awards (24 years), the winner of the Golden Globe has also won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film on ten occasions (42% of the time).  Those titles were:  
  • The Assault (1986)
  •  Pelle the Conqueror (1988)
  • Cinema Paradiso (1989)
  • Indochine (1992)
  • Kolya (1996) 
  • All About My Mother (1999)
  • Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
  • No Man's Land (2001)
  • The Sea Inside (2004)
  • In A Better World (2010)

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Burnt by the Sun (1994)

Burnt by the Sun • Utomlennye solntsem (1994)
Burnt by the Sun • Utomlennye solntsem • Утомлённые солнцем (1994)

Genre: Drama
Director: Nikita Mikhalkov
Starring: Nikita Mikhalkov, Oleg Menshikov, Ingeborga Dapkunaite, Nadezhda Mikhalkova
Language: Russian, French
Duration: 135 min.
Rating: 7.5  

Summary:
Russia in 1936, revolutionary hero Colonel Kotov is spending an idyllic summer with his young wife and six-year-old daughter Nadya and other assorted family and friends. Things change dramatically with the surprise arrival of Cousin Dimitri from Moscow, who charms the women and little Nadya with his games and pianistic bravura. But Kotov isn't fooled: this is the time of Stalin's repression, and he knows that Dimitri isn't paying a social call...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Black Bread (2010)

Black Bread • Pa negre (2010)
Black Bread • Pa negre (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Agustí Villaronga
Starring: Francesc Colomer, Marina Comas, Nora Navas, Roger Casamajor
Language: Catalan, Spanish
Duration: 108 min.
Rating: 7.4  

Summary:
Set in Catalonia during the immediate post-war years. A young boy named Andreu, who belongs to the losing side in the conflict, happens upon the bodies of a man and a young boy in the woods. Local officials want to blame Andreu's father for the situation; in response, Andreu decides to try and help his dad by setting out in search of the real killers.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

The Fifth Horseman is Fear (1965)

The Fifth Horseman is Fear • ...a páty jezdec je Strach (1965)
The Fifth Horseman is Fear • ...a páty jezdec je Strach (1965)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Zbynek Brynych
Starring: Miroslav Machácek, Olga Scheinpflugová, Josef Vinklár, Jirí Vrstála, Jirí Adamíra
Language: Czech
Duration: 100 min.
Rating: 7.9  

Summary:
A Jewish doctor in Nazi occupied Czechoslovakia risks his life and attempts to regain his identity by assisting a wounded political fugitive.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Elena (2011)

Elena (2011)
Elena • Елена (2011)

Best New Film
Genre: Drama
Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev
Starring: Andrey Smirnov, Yelena Lyadova, Nadezhda Markina, Alexey Rozin
Language: Russian
Duration: 109 min.
Rating: 8.3  

Summary:
Elena and Vladimir are an older couple from different backgrounds. Vladimir is a wealthy and cold man, Elena comes from a modest milieu and is a docile wife. They met late in life and each one has children from previous marriages. Elena's son is unemployed, unable to support his own family and relies on Elena for money. Vladimir's daughter is a wild child who has a distant relationship with her father.  After a heart attack puts Vladimir in hospital, Elena comes up with a plan to give her son and grandchildren a better chance in life.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Punk's Not Dead (2011)

Punk's Not Dead • Pankot ne e mrtov (2011)
Punk's Not Dead • Pankot ne e mrtov • Панкот не е мртов (2011)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Vladimir Blazevski
Starring: Jordanco Cevrevski, Flora Dostovska, Toni Mihajlovski, Jordan Simonov, Kamka Tocinovski
Language: Macedonian, Albanian, English, Serbian
Duration: 101 min.
Rating: 7.2  

Summary:
Mirsa, once the singer of Macedonia's most popular punk band, is now a washed out 40 year old living in the slums.  One day he gets a once in a lifetime offer to perform for a 'multi-cultural' event in a neighboring Albanian town, and he hits the road with his best friend Ljak and girlfriend Nina in search of his former bandmates.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Audition/Talent Competition (1964)

Audition/Talent Competition • Konkurs (1964)
Audition/Talent Competition • Konkurs (1964)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Musical / Documentary
Director: Milos Forman
Language: Czech
Duration: 79 min.
Rating: 7.0  

Summary:
The first work of renowned director Milos Forman, consisting of two short films which observe amateur musicians and singers rehearsing and auditioning.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Turn Me On, Goddammit (2011)

Turn Me On, Goddammit • Få meg på, for faen (2011)
Turn Me On, Goddammit • Få meg på, for faen (2011)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Jannicke Systad Jacobsen
Starring: Helene Bergsholm, Henriette Steenstrup, Malin Bjørhovde, Matias Myren, Beate Støfring
Language: Norwegian
Duration: 76 min.
Rating: 7.5  

Summary:
Alma is a small-town teen with a big imagination. Horny and looking for love, she has only her lively imagination and a kindly phone sex operator to ameliorate her frustratingly lonely and chaste life. But Alma's active fantasy world and even more active libido only seem to get her into trouble.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

The Front Line (2011)

The Front Line • Go-ji-jeon (2011)
The Front Line • Go-ji-jeon • 고지전 (2011)

Genre: War • Drama
Director: Jang Hun
Starring: Shin Ha-kyun, Go Soo, Ryu Seung-su, Ko Chang-seok, Lee Je-hoon
Language: Korean
Duration: 133 min.
Rating: 6.3  

Summary:
Towards the end of the Korean War an uneasy ceasefire is ordered, but out on the Eastern front line of the Aerok Hills in an expanse of land called the Aero.K, fierce fighting continues.  A race to capture this strategic point to determine a new border between the two Koreas is the ultimate prize.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Courage for Every Day (1964)

Courage for Every Day • Kazdý den odvahu (1964)
Courage for Every Day • Kazdý den odvahu (1964)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Evald Schorm
Starring: Jana Brejchová, Jan Kacer, Jirina Jirásková, Vlastimil Brodský
Language: Czech
Duration: 85 min.
Rating: 7.3  

Summary:
An existential study of a young worker living in Prague before the collapse of communism.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Beyond (2010)

Beyond • Svinalängorna (2010)
Beyond • Svinalängorna (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Pernilla August
Starring: Noomi Rapace, Ola Rapace, Outi Mäenpää, Ville Virtanen, Tehilla Blad
Language: Swedish, Finnish
Duration: 99 min.
Rating: 7.4  

Summary:
A drama set in 1970s Sweden and centered on a young woman's experiences growing up in a home riddled with abuse and alcoholism.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Swordsmen (2011)

Swordsmen • Wu Xia (2011)
Swordsmen • Wu Xia • 武侠 (2011)

Genre: Martial Arts
Director: Peter Chan
Starring: Donnie Yen, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Tang Wei
Language: Mandarin, Sichuanese
Duration: 126 min.
Rating: 7.3  

Summary:
In the late Qing Dynasty, Liu Jinxi is a papermaker and father of two sons who lives a seemingly normal life with his family in a remote village.  However, the arrival of a detective soon threatens to tear them apart...

Sunday, December 4, 2011

2011 European Film Awards Winners


Last night, the 24th annual European Film Awards were presented in a ceremony held in Berlin's spectacular Tempodrom am Anhalter Bahnhof.  Awards in 17 different categories were handed out in honor of the year's best examples of European cinema.

Leading the way with 3 wins including Best European Film was the controversial Danish director Lars von Triers apocalyptic Melancholia.  Also with 3 wins was The Kings Speech which took home the People's Choice Award, and Best Actor for Colin Firth's performance.  The other major award winners were Tilda Swinton for Best Actress in We Need To Talk About Kevin, and Susanne Bier for Best Director in In A Better World / Haevnen.

Read on for the full list of winners.

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Diamonds of the Night (1964)

Diamonds of the Night • Démanty noci (1964)
Diamonds of the Night • Démanty noci (1964)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Jan Nemec
Starring: Ladislav Jánsky, Antonín Kumbera, Irma Bischofova
Language: Czech, German
Duration: 63 min.
Rating: 8.1  

Summary:
The tense, brutal story of two Jewish boys who escape from a train transporting them from one concentration camp to another.

Friday, December 2, 2011

72 Days (2010)

72 Days • Sedamdeset i dva dana (2010)
72 Days • Sedamdeset i dva dana (2010)

Genre: Comedy, Drama
Director: Danilo Serbedzija
Starring: Rade Serbedzija, Kresimir Mikic, Bogdan Diklic, Zivko Anocic, Mira Banjac
Language: Croatian
Duration: 93 min.
Rating: 5.8  

Summary:
The American war pension of Grandpa Durad is paid to his widow Nedja and is the only source of income for the Paripovic family. When Nedja suddenly dies, their very existence is threatened and Mane, the head of the family devises a cunning plan.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Texas Killing Fields (2011)

Texas Killing Fields (2011)
Texas Killing Fields (2011)

Genre: Drama
Director: Ami Canaan Mann
Starring: Sam Worthington, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chloë Grace Moretz, Jessica Chastain
Language: English
Duration: 105 min.
Rating: 6.0  

Summary:
Follows Detective Souder, a homicide detective in a small Texan town, and his partner, transplanted NYPD detective Heigh as they track a sadistic serial killer dumping his victims' mutilated bodies in a nearby marsh locals call The Killing Fields.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Random Musings - November 2011

Random Notes of the Month

The end of another month means it's time for some random musings.  Why does it seem like I just did one of these last week?

November saw some steady growth in traffic here at Bonjour Tristesse, we passed the 20,000 pageview mark for the first time, and also moved up to PageRank 4 in Google's toolbar.

One thing I did notice was a sharp dip in traffic corresponding to the recent American holiday.  It seems people don't do as much blog reading around turkey day.

I was able to catch up on several more of the 2012 Foreign Oscar hopefuls, bringing my watched total to 13 out of the 63 films in the running.  It's still a bit early for me to make an official shortlist prediction, but I've already seen quite a few very strong films this year, and it's shaping up to be quite the race.

I'm also quite enjoying watching and writing about the films for my new feature on the Czech/Slovak New Wave, which is just getting to the good stuff now.  I will continue to cover another one every three or four days until I make it through the entire list. 

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Black Peter (1964)

Black Peter • Cérny Petr (1964)
Black Peter • Cérny Petr (1964)

Czech New Wave
Genre: Drama
Director: Milos Forman
Starring: Ladislav Jakim, Pavla Martinkova, Jan Vostrcil, Vladimír Pucholt
Language: Czech
Duration: 85 min.
Rating: 7.8  

Summary:
Chronicling a few days in the life of 17-year-old Petr.  A shy teen just starting his first job, falling in love, and dealing with overbearing parents.   

Monday, November 28, 2011

Le Havre (2011)

Le Havre (2011)
Le Havre (2011)

Best New Film
Genre: Comedy • Drama
Director: Aki Kaurismäki
Starring: André Wilms, Kati Outinen, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Blondin Miguel, Evelyne Didi
Language: French
Duration: 93 min.
Rating: 8.4  

Summary:
Fate throws young African refugee Idrissa into the path of Marcel Marx, a well-spoken bohemian who works as a shoeshiner.  With innate optimism and the unwavering support of his community, Marcel stands up to officials doggedly pursuing the boy for deportation.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

2011 Taipei Golden Horse Awards


The 48th annual Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival came to a close on Saturday November 26th with its traditional awards ceremony honoring the years best Chinese-language films and filmmakers.

The Taiwanese big budget epic and representative to the 2012 Oscars, Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale, won 5 awards including Best Feature Film.  While Hong Kong's own Academy Award submission, A Simple Life, took home 3 major awards for Best Director - Ann Hui, Best Leading Actor - Andy Lau, and Best Leading Actress - Deanie Ip (who also won for best actress at the 2011 Venice Film Festival).

I'm very much looking forward to seeing those two films, hopefully soon.  Read on for the complete list of Golden Horse Award winners.