68th Venice Film Festival (2011) Preview

The 68th la Biennale di Venezia 2011 Venice Film Festival begins two weeks from now (and runs from August 31 - September 10) with an impressive lineup of 23 world premiere films in competition for the coveted Golden Lion, many of which I am greatly anticipating to see.  So far 22 of them have been announced, with an additional surprise film expected to be named sometime during the festival.

These include David Cronenberg's Freudian thriller A Dangerous Method; Let the Right One In director Tomas Alfredson's adaptation of John le Carré's novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; Fish Tank director Andrea Arnold's version of Wuthering Heights;  and Steve McQueen's eagerly awaited followup to 2008's Hunger, titled Shame.

The International Jury will be presided over by American director Darren Aronofsky, and alongside him are Finnish visual artist Eija-Liisa Ahtila, Talking Heads front-man and composer David Byrne, American director Todd Haynes, Italian director Mario Martone, Italian actress Alba Rohrwacher, and French director André Téchiné.

Read on for the full lineup, synopsis and trailers.
 
Venezia 68 - Official Competition Lineup
*Click on the to see available trailers.

Tomas Alfredson - TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY
UK, Germany, 127'
Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt
In the bleak days of the Cold War, espionage veteran George Smiley is forced from semi-retirement to uncover a Soviet agent within MI6’s echelons.

Andrea Arnold - WUTHERING HEIGHTS
UK, 128'
Kaya Scodelario, Nichola Burley, Steve Evets, Oliver Milburn
A poor young English boy named Heathcliff is taken in by the wealthy Earnshaw family where he develops an intense relationship with his young foster sister, Cathy.

Shangjun Cai - REN SHAN REN HAI 人山人海 (PEOPLE MOUNTAIN PEOPLE SEA)
China, 90'
Chen Jianbin, Tao Hong, Wu Xiubo, Li Hucheng, Zhang Xin, Wang Xu, Bao Zhenjiang, Hou Xiang, Tian Xinyu
Lao Tie decides to hunt down his brother’s killer and begins a journey that will unleash his long-suppressed inner pain and rage.

Ami Canaan Mann - TEXAS KILLING FIELDS
USA, 109'
Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jeffrey Dean Morgan
In the Texas bayous, a local homicide detective teams up with a cop from New York City to investigate a series of unsolved murders.

George Clooney - THE IDES OF MARCH
USA, 98'
Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei
In the days leading up to a presidential primary, a Democratic candidate schools his idealistic campaign press secretary in the dubious machinations of modern politics.

Cristina Comencini - QUANDO LA NOTTE (WHEN THE NIGHT)
Italy, 116'
Claudia Pandolfi, Filippo Timi, Michela Cescon, Thomas Trabacchi
Marina is a fragile and insecure young woman struggling to be the perfect mother. Hoping a change of scenery will improve her baby’s sleeping habits, she decides to spend the summer vacation in the mountainside.

Emanuele Crialese - TERRAFERMA
Italy, France, 88'
Filippo Pucillo, Donatella Finocchiaro, Giuseppe Fiorello, Claudio Santamaria
The history of the Sicilian island of fishermen, almost intact. Just lapped by tourism, which also begins to change behaviors and attitudes of the islanders.

David Cronenberg - A DANGEROUS METHOD
Germany, Canada, 99'
Keira Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, Michael Fassbender, Vincent Cassel
Concerning the turbulent relationship between Carl Jung and his mentor Sigmund Freud as they struggle to treat a troubled patient.

Abel Ferrara - 4:44 LAST DAY ON EARTH
USA, 82'
Willem Dafoe, Shanyn Leigh, Paz de la Huerta, Natasha Lyonne
In a large apartment high above the city lives our couple. Just a normal afternoon – except that this isn’t a normal afternoon, for them or anyone else. Because tomorrow, at 4:44 am, give or take a few seconds, the world will come to an end.

William Friedkin - KILLER JOE
USA, 103'
Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple, Gina Gershon
A desperate debtor plots to kill his mother, with the help of his family, and hires a crooked cop to do the job, but Killer Joe asks for his teenage sister as a “retainer.”

Philippe Garrel - UN ÉTÉ BRULANT (A BURNING HOT SUMMER)
France, Italy, Switzerland, 95'
Monica Bellucci, Louis Garrel, Céline Sallette, Jérôme Robart
On a burning summer’s night, a sports car crashes headlong into a tree.

Ann Hui - TAO JIE 桃姐 (A SIMPLE LIFE)
Hong Kong, China, 117'
Andy Lau, Deanie Yip, Anthony Wong, Tsui Hark
A deeply moving story about the relationship between a young man and a family servant.

Eran Kolirin - HAHITHALFUT (THE EXCHANGE)
Israel, Germany, 94'
Rotem Keinan, Sharon Tal, Dov Navon, Shirili Deshe
A man stands by and observes his own life from the outside. But is this life still truly his own?

Yorgos Lanthimos - ALPEIS Αλπεις (ALPS)
Greece, 93'
Ariane Labed, Aggeliki Papoulia, Aris Servetalis, Johnny Vekris
A drama about a hospital night nurse who provides unusual services to bereaved families.

Steve McQueen - SHAME
United Kingdom, 99'
Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge, Nicole Beharie
A New York man confronts his sexual compulsions and the self-destructive acts of his sister.

Gian Alfonso Pacinotti [GIPI] - L'ULTIMO TERRESTRE
Italy, 100'
Gabriele Spinelli, Anna Bellato, Roberto Herlitzka, Teco Celio
The story of the last week on Earth before the announcement of the existence of an extraterrestrial society.

Roman Polanski - CARNAGE
France, Germany, Spain, Poland, 79'
Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, John C. Reilly
The parents of a playground “victim” invite the parents of the “bully” to their apartment to sort it out. Cordial banter gradually develops a razor-sharp edge as all 4 parents reveal their contradictions and prejudices. None of them will escape the ensuing carnage.

Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud - POULET AUX PRUNES (CHICKEN WITH PLUMS)
France, Belgium, Germany, 90'
Mathieu Amalric, Maria De Medeiros, Golshifteh Farahani, Isabella Rossellini, Chiara Mastroianni
Nasser Ali Khan, the most celebrated violin player has his beloved instrument broken. Unable to find another to replace it, life without music seems intolerable.

Aleksander Sokurov - FAUST Фауст
Russia, 134'
Johannes Zeiler, Anton Adasinskiy, Isolda Dychauk, Hanna Schygulla
A version of the German legend in which a man sells his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge.

Todd Solondz - DARK HORSE
USA, 84'
Mia Farrow, Christopher Walken, Justin Bartha, Selma Blair
An intimate dark comedy about a manchild whose desire for a romantic relationship runs smack into reality.

Sion Sono - HIMIZU ヒミズ
Japan, 129'
Shôta Sometani, Fumi Nikaidô, Tetsu Watanabe, Mitsuru Fukikoshi
A live-action adaptation of Minoru Furuya’s manga Himizu.

Johnnie To - DYUT MENG GAM 奪命金 (LIFE WITHOUT PRINCIPLE)
Hong Kong, 100'
Lau Ching-Wan, Richie Jen, Denise Ho
The story of three characters: an ordinary bank teller, a small-time thug, and a straight-arrow police inspector.

Wei Te-Sheng - SEEDIQ BALE 賽德克‧巴萊
China, Taiwan, 135'
Da-Ching, Umin Boya, Landy Wen, Lo Mei-ling
The true story of the aboriginal Seediq tribe warrior Mouna Rudo who led his people to rebel against the Japanese occupation of Taiwan.