AFI FEST 06 - Thursday Picks
by Andre Soares
At 4:15pm, Jesper Ganslandt’s touching — and more than a little disturbing — Farval Falkenberg / Falkenberg, Farewell, Sweden’s entry for the upcoming Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award. Set in a small Swedish coastal town, Farval Falkenberg follows five young friends on the cusp of adulthood, as they do drugs and loaf around — until tragedy unexpectedly strikes.
At 6:30pm, Rachid Bouchareb’s Indigènes / Days of Glory, the story of North Africans fighting for France during World War II, and the winner of an ensemble Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival. Indigènes is Algeria’s selection for the 2006 Best Foreign-Language Film Academy Award. (Bouchareb was born in France, but is of Algerian ancestry.)
At 6:45pm, Roger Michell’s Venus, starring Peter O’Toole — who has been touted for an Oscar win — as an elderly actor (married to Vanessa Redgrave) who befriends the grandniece (Jodie Whittaker) of a fellow veteran actor (Leslie Phillips). Venus was nominated for five British Independent Film Awards: Best Actor (O’Toole), Best Supporting Performance (Redgrave, Phillips), Best Newcomer (Whittaker), and Best Screenplay (Hanif Kureishi).
At 12am, Mexico’s selection for the 2006 Best Foreign-Language Film Academy Award, El Laberinto del fauno / Pan’s Labyrinth, a mix of politics and fantasy in which a young girl escapes from the brutal reality of the right-wing regime of Spain’s General Francisco Franco by creating an imaginary world of mystery and horror. Directed and written by Guillermo del Toro, Pan’s Labyrinth stars Ivana Baquero and Doug Jones.
European Film Awards 2006 Nominations
RANG DE BASANTI and India’s Military
Jean-Daniel Lafond’s Controversial Documentary AMERICAN FUGITIVE
Comments
Leave a Reply
Note: All comments are moderated. Different views and opinions are welcome, but abusive/bigoted/flaming comments will NOT be approved. Also, please be aware that the Alternative Film Guide has NO contact information for the talent mentioned in this blog or any information pertaining to or access to distributors'/producers' film prints.
