Wednesday, August 28, 2013

2013 Venice International Film Festival: Day 1


The 70th Venice International Film Festival (Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica), organized by La Biennale di Venezia and directed by Alberto Barbera, opens today, bringing eleven days of excitement to the Venice Lido and to this blog.

The festivities begin this evening with the inauguration ceremony, hosted by Italian model/actress Eva Riccobono (winner of the 2013 Ciak d'Oro for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Passione Sinistra by Marco Ponti).

The ceremony will be followed by the highly anticipated World Premiere of Out of Competition opening film, Gravity by Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón. A 3D outer space thriller, starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock.

Eva Riccobono © la Biennale di Venezia
Day 1 - Wednesday, August 28
Opening Film - Out of Competition
Gravity
directed by Alfonso Cuarón
UK, USA

Synopsis:
Dr. Ryan Stone is a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky. But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone—tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness. The deafening silence tells them they have lost any link to Earth... and any chance for rescue. As fear turns to panic, every gulp of air eats away at what little oxygen is left. But the only way home may be to go further out into the terrifying expanse of space.
Critical Reception:

"At once a nervy experiment in blockbuster minimalism and a film of robust movie-movie thrills, restoring a sense of wonder, terror and possibility to the bigscreen that should inspire awe among critics and audiences worldwide"Justin Chang (Variety)
"The most realistic and beautifully choreographed film ever set in space ... smart but not arty, dramatically straightforward but so dazzlingly told as to make it a benchmark in its field."Todd McCarthy (The Hollywood Reporter)
"About as visceral an experience as you can have in a cinema, it’s a technical marvel, and it’s a blockbuster with heart and soul in spades. It’s about the best opening to a film festival that you could ask for."Oliver Lyttelton (The Playlist)
"A bold (possibly even eccentric) and majestically rendered parable on the wonders of creation, with a very specific focus on the details of reproduction. "David Jenkins (Little White Lies)
"While the performances are spot on, the real stars of the film are Cuaron’s smart direction and the spectacular special effects, which should come under attention during awards season."Mark Adams (Screen Daily)
"A brilliantly tense and involving account of two stricken astronauts; a howl in the wilderness that sucks the breath from your lungs."Xan Brooks (The Guardian)
"A science-fiction thriller of rare and diamond-hard brilliance."Robbie Collin (The Telegraph)
The official competition begins Thursday, with Australian director John Curran's Tracks, starring Mia Wasikowska as famed adventurer Robyn Davidson; and Italian stage actress/writer Emma Dante's film debut Via Castellana Bandiera. Also screening in the Orizzonti section, perhaps my most anticipated title of the entire festival, Japanese director Sion Sono's latest 地獄でなぜ悪い (Why Don't You Play in Hell?). An action drama written 17 years ago which the director describes as his 'requiem to 35mm film'.

The 2013 Venice International Film Festival runs from August 28 to September 7, be sure to return for daily updates and more!


12 comments:

Unknown said...

I'm not that interested in seeing Gravity but it seems to be getting insanely good reviews.

Unknown said...

Yeah from the early reviews I've seen, EVERYONE is in love with Gravity. I don't much care for Bullock or Clooney but might go see this for the cinematography and visuals.

Unknown said...

I was surprised I had actually heard of it. Took me a minute to gather all the info and remember the trailer. I didn't think too much of it but with these early reviews I might have to change my mind

Unknown said...

This is among the five films of the year that I really, really want to see as I love Cuaron's work and I'm eager to see what he and Chivo are going to do with this film.

Unknown said...

Great coverage as always Bonjour! WOW, such great reviews for Gravity, I'm even more intrigued now as the trailers actually didn't grab me.

Unknown said...

It's a good sign i think. For once there seems to be a film that is better than its own trailer.

Unknown said...

If I see it, it will be for Lubezki's cinematography. What are the other four films on your list?

Unknown said...

Cheers Ruth. I was surprised to see such overwhelming positive response too.

Unknown said...

As of right now as I just found out it was in my top 10 Most Anticipated Films of 2013: "Nymphomaniac", "12 Years a Slave", "Inside Llewlyn Davis", and "Nebraska". The rest that was in my top 10 I've now seen already.

Unknown said...

Can't really add anything, except Gravity looks to be a new release that's meant to be seen on the big screen.

Unknown said...

All of them are on my list as well. I wonder if Nymphomaniac is still coming out this year. Haven't heard any news lately.

Unknown said...

Yeah it looks to be very much that kind of movie. It probably benefits from a big and loud sound system too.

Post a Comment