ICMF-FF7: Main Slate

[zzzorf]

Welcome to the 2023 iCMForum Film Festival!


From Monday the 13th of November to Monday the 11th of December this thread will be the central thread for the 7th edition of this forums annual film festival. The purpose of this festival is to highlight recent films (this year the movies are from 2020-2022) that have flown under the radar since their release (<10,000 IMDb ratings). For most of the year the programming team of beavis, St. Gloede, sol, matthewscott8, filmbantha, Onderhond, Fergenaprido and myself have watched countless hours of eligible films to bring you all the best line we possibly could. Between us we nominated 183 titles we believed were worthy of the festival and from them we nailed it down to 39 movies we believed were the cream of the crop and the most worthy of being part of the Main Slate, the beating heart of the festival and the movies up to win the prestigious Grand Prize and join the list of our previous winners:

2017 - Lu bian ye can / Kaili Blues (2015)
2018 - Tower (2016)
2019 - Tesnota / Closeness (2017)
2020 - A Vida Invisível / Invisible Life (2019)
2021 - Sheytan vojud nadarad / There Is No Evil (2020)
2022 - Bor Mi Vanh Chark / The Long Walk (2019)

This award is decided upon by our esteemed jury who this year is made up of:
mightysparks
gunnar
AdamH
celldweller7
outdoorcats
magnusbernhardsen
djpal
pitchorneirda
DavidAConrad

As a reward for their service to the festival for serving on the Jury they were given 38 of the films to choose 9 films they most wanted to see on the main slate, which would join the movie us programmers had chosen as our Centrepiece of the festival, giving us the 10 movies that make up this years Main Slate.


In this thread everyone is welcomed to discuss the ten selected movies of this year's Main Slate
Please rate the films you've seen on a scale from 1-10 to help contribute to this year's Audience Award.



Centrepiece - Un monde / Playground (2021)
Belgium, Laura Wandel (F)

Few films manage to immerse you in the worlds of children the way Playground does, placing the camera directly on a young girl on her first day of school, crying and hugging her father, afraid to go in. The camera is almost always consistently on her, or from her perspective, allowing us to see and experience the world as a child. All scenes are also shot in the school, playground and by the gate, cutting all homelife, and immersing us further into the cruel world of children. Bullying starts to seep, and it goes to some unusual, unnerving and yet emotionally resonant places. In its earnestness, it feels raw and real. This is Laura Wandel's feature film debut, and we believe that she is a key director to watch in the years to come.




Mila / Apples (2020)
Greece, Christos Nikou

Apples is a Greek Weird Wave film set in a world where a pandemic is erasing people's memories. Cold, calculated, sparse and darkly humorous we follow the "New Identity program" through the eyes of one of the amnesiacs; a man who is gradually building up a new memory gallery by completing tasks, from riding a bike to experiencing a real car crash. Tensions rise as he starts a friendship and possibly a romantic relationship with a woman going through the same series of tasks, just one or two steps ahead of him - which adds an interesting layer of seeing a glimpse of what is coming up for him.




Ghasideyeh gave sefid / Ballad of a White Cow (2020)
Iran, Maryam Moghadam (F), Behtash Sanaeeha

Ballad of a White Cow follows the story of the window of a wrongfully executed man, who unknowingly befriends the judge who sentenced her beloved to death. It is a slow-brooding morality play and character drama poking at Iranian laws and values, with a particular focus on misogyny and the death penalty that is unafraid to go some dark places.




Corsage (2022)
Austria, Marie Kreutzer (F)

Corsage is a punk-retelling of the life of the iconic Empress Elizabeth of Austria-Hungary, better known as "Sisi", at the moment when she passes 40. The film plays fast and loose with history, and creates a vibrant and rebellious picture of a woman attempting to break free from the role she is forced into. Strengthened by an excellent performance from Vicky Krieps, this is a very different kind of "period film".




Große Freiheit / Great Freedom (2021)
Austria/Germany, Sebastian Meise

Great Freedom is a quiet, slow-burning and restrained look at life in captivity, stripping away everything except prison walls. The fantastic Franz Rogowski stars as a young to middle-aged gay man who for decades keeps being sentenced to prison under Paragraph 175, which criminalized homosexuality in East Germany. There is sorrow and melancholy throughout, but also a sense of acceptance, and possibly even the inability to function outside the walls. Years blend together, unusual friendships are forged, and the oppressive world our leads inhabit remains throughout it all.




Totsukuni no shôjo / The Girl from the Other Side (2022)
Japan, Yutaro Kubo

The Girl from the Other Side is a stunning indie animation that is reminiscent of Studio 4°C's Comedy and Mamoru Oshii's Angel's Egg. Based on a manga, director Kubo sculpts a magical realm that slowly reveals its secrets. The animation is a little limited, but the art style is magnificent, and the score is entrancing. The characters are both mysterious and loveable, their relationship both simple and complex.




Maryjki / Marygoround (2020)
Poland, Daria Woszek (F)

Marygoround is perhaps the most visually expressive film in the entire main slate. Half oversaturated, artificial depresso-realism, half neon nightmare it depicts an unhinged trip into a menopausal woman's psyche. We follow Maria, a 50-year-old, highly religious virgin working in a small grocery shop, who, as menopause hits start to get urges she never felt before. Mixing horror and deadpan comedy, this is a surprising and dynamic film that defies most labels.




Ninjababy (2021)
Norway, Yngvild Sve Flikke (F)

Ninjababy is the tale of a fetus so sneaky that the mother-to-be only realizes she is pregnant when it is too late to get an abortion. Forced to carry the baby to term, after repeatedly screaming at the abortion clinic, the professionally wayward 20-something starts drawing and speaking to the imaginary version of the fetus, who of course takes the form of a small ninja whispering in her ear. This is the main-slate's only all-out comedy, and it's a wild ride.




Nitram (2021)
Australia, Justin Kurzel

Nitram takes a look back at the lead up to the Port Arthur Massacre, the worst modern Mass Shooting in Australian history, and the catalyst for their gun laws. What sets it apart from other true story shooting movies is that it doesn't sensationalise the shooting (it all happens off-screen) but more looks at Martin Bryant's mindset that got him to that point The central performance from Caleb Landry Jones is impressive here, his brooding portrayal of a twisted individual makes for a riveting experience.




The Timekeepers of Eternity (2021)
Greece, Aristotelis Maragkos

The Timekeepers of Eternity is possibly the most unusual film in the main slate as it is actually a "remix film". It takes the 3-hour 1995 mini-series The Langoliers and strips away two-thirds, changes it to black and white, and adds effects and rips to the film as if the film was made of paper, and it's all being torn apart. Even so, it is a clear narrative and is a very tense viewing. We'll be particularly interested in what those who saw the original says here.





The unchosen movies were returned to the programmers and were used to help populate 10 minor slates of 4 movies each and their discussion threads can be found here:

Geographical Based Minor Slates (Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, English-Language Independents): viewtopic.php?t=6673
Genre Based Minor Slates (Animation, Arthouse, Documentary, "Just Before Dawn", LGBTQ+): viewtopic.php?t=6674


Once again there is am accompanying podcast from our very own Talking Images team where regular hosts St. Gloede and filmbantha are joined by fellow programmers matthewscott8 and myself to discuss the movies featured here in the main slate.
(Links to come when podcast is released)


Complete iCMF-FF7 Film Lists
https://www.imdb.com/list/ls523158743/
https://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/2023 ... f7/zzzorf/
https://letterboxd.com/zzzorf/list/2023 ... -icmf-ff7/
https://www.criticker.com/films/?collection=95612

[msainy]

Thanks zorf, team, and jury for your effort, looking forward to join the festival this year.

Is there a recommended viewing order or can I just dive into the centerpiece day 1?

[St. Gloede]

Thanks zorf, team, and jury for your effort, looking forward to join the festival this year.

Is there a recommended viewing order or can I just dive into the centerpiece day 1?

There is no recommended viewing order, and everyone can start with the films that excite them the most. That said, starting the discussion around the centrepiece would be excellent.

[msainy]

1. Un monde / Playground (2021)
"When you help people, things get worse." spoken by 6 years old Nora, who's one of the best child character ever, after standing up for her bullied brother. On her first day at school she's crying, hugging her brother and father, because she doesn't want to leave them. But as she settles down and get used to the place she quickly becomes the more mature person among the three, who are all we see of the family. She instinctively know that compassion makes the world better and posses hugs that heal souls.

Another unique thing is how the camera is focused on her the whole duration, she's always the center of the frame, we're looking at her and sometimes what's around her. Even when there are key plot points happening that don't involve her directly, the camera is still on her and the rest is background noise.

Rating: 8/10

[DavidAConrad]

Incidentally, Kaili Blues and Tower are among my favorites of their years (as well as The Long Walk which got my top vote last year), so I should prioritize Closeness and Invisible Life.

Reviews to come!

[hurluberlu]

Centrepiece - Un monde / Playground (2021)
Belgium, Laura Wandel (F)

Great camera work, reminiscent of the best back-to-the-camera and close shots drama films seen in recent years (from Nemes, Bellochio, DHont, Brizé), only in a school environment at height of kids. We are locked up with the insurmountable dilemma of daily bullying as experienced by the protagonists and feel with them all the intensity of their despair. On the other end, I somehow found the characters a little prisoner of the script with no relief from the school routine and bullying time (or the threat and perception of). Home could have been an interesting counterpoint, especially with an unemployed father. With it sole focus on school time, it does also look like a case study on harassment funded by educational authorities.
7-

[mightysparks]

The Timekeepers of Eternity (2021) 8/10
The Langoliers has been a favourite of mine since I was in single digits and of my last viewing has remained a 10/10 despite its flaws. This film takes everything awesome about it (mostly Toomey and the creepiness and the creatures), focuses more on Toomey, shaves off the 2 hours or so of meandering and some crappy acting and replaces the cheap 90s tv movie aesthetic with a stylish black and white animation that really heightens the atmosphere. Just a really awesome edit/remix that captures all the stuff I love about the original miniseries (and gives it a better ending).

Nitram (2021) 6/10
As a true crime addict I've heard/seen plenty of podcasts about the Port Arthur Massacre and maybe that's why I couldn't get into this as much. It offered nothing new to what I already know and disrespected the effect and victims of the actual massacre by skipping over it entirely Just failed to pack a punch or give me any new insight. The acting is fine, the film is a bit slow and lacks tension but it does have a slightly off-vibe which is nice. It's an ok film but look elsewhere for a deeper examination of Bryant or the massacre.

[matthewscott8]

Nitram (2021) 6/10
It offered nothing new to what I already know and disrespected the effect and victims of the actual massacre by skipping over it entirely

I was one of the programmers who gave this film my top support and it is worth mentioning the programmer view on this critical point. Something that the film reports accurately is that Nitram had been inspired by the Dunblane massacre. The view from clinical psychologists has been that if you show people footage of massacres and even the effect of the massacres (sirens, weeping, victim impact statements), you generate copycats. You shouldn't even mention the shooter's name, which is why they don't in the film. Nitram was a copycat and there should never be a copycat of Nitram.

The issue is that for very angry disturbed people, attention and distress in others is exactly what they're looking for. Pictures of crying families is narcotic to them.

I can't speak for everyone, but I'm pretty sure Zzzorf would sign up to these sentiments given our chat on the film festival podcast. If the movie had proceeded like so many of these movies do in showing the violence, and the aftermath, I would never have given it any support.

I do appreciate that it's an emotive topic and we didn't program it lightly.

[msainy]

2. Mila / Apples (2020)
While I can see parallels between this film and the work of other ''absurd'' directors like Tsai or Roy Anderson, or even the writings of Gogol, I think Apples occupy a unique space in that field. It's playful and sad, depressing and exciting, hilarious and heartbreaking, I think this is my favorite type of humor. Early in the film when the doctors played a christmas song and started shaking their heads to it, I knew I was going to have a fun time, but I didn't anticipate the lengths it'll go to, both in humor and emotion, when it reached its conclusion.

I must say that I never heard of the "Greek Weird Wave" before, and I'll try to keep an eye on it in the future.

Rating: 9/10

[matthewscott8]

2. Mila / Apples (2020)
While I can see parallels between this film and the work of other ''absurd'' directors like Tsai or Roy Anderson, or even the writings of Gogol, I think Apples occupy a unique space in that field. It's playful and sad, depressing and exciting, hilarious and heartbreaking, I think this is my favorite type of humor. Early in the film when the doctors played a christmas song and started shaking their heads to it, I knew I was going to have a fun time, but I didn't anticipate the lengths it'll go to, both in humor and emotion, when it reached its conclusion.

I must say that I never heard of the "Greek Weird Wave" before, and I'll try to keep an eye on it in the future.

Rating: 9/10

Chris and I discussed whether this is primarily or secondarily a comedy. I found comedy to be the most identifiable genre affiliation.

My own view on the movie is

Spoiler

that Aris is never ill at any point, he is a malingerer who gets the idea to start a new life from listening to a radio show on the pandemic. This is why all of the diagnostic tests come back blank, why he observes his hospital ward neighbour to copy symptoms, why he says his old house number by mistake, why he recognizes a dog he shouldn't and has to cover up.

This made the movie a lot funnier for me than it has been for others. Though comedy is definitely present one way or the other.

[msainy]

Chris and I discussed whether this is primarily or secondarily a comedy. I found comedy to be the most identifiable genre affiliation.

My own view on the movie is

Spoiler

that Aris is never ill at any point, he is a malingerer who gets the idea to start a new life from listening to a radio show on the pandemic. This is why all of the diagnostic tests come back blank, why he observes his hospital ward neighbour to copy symptoms, why he says his old house number by mistake, why he recognizes a dog he shouldn't and has to cover up.

This made the movie a lot funnier for me than it has been for others. Though comedy is definitely present one way or the other.

I think this the dilemma of dark comedy, and the darker they get the harder to accept them as ''funny movies''. I personally find Tsai films full of jokes with extreme and absurdly long set-ups and often without a punchline, which make them funnier when they work.

As for the spoiler

Spoiler

I agree that he never lost his memory, but after his wife's death he couldn't cope with depression, the void she left was unbearable for him, hence how the house is a mess and even her clothes were hanged out like she was ready to go out any minute. So he thinks of joining that program and the film starts there. It's also worth mentioning that he stopped eating apples when someone told him that it helps the memory, but he got back to them after accepting his wife's death.

[djpal]

The Great Freedom (2021) Rating: 9/10
The film provides a sometimes harsh but human look at homosexual and prison life in Post-War Germany. The focus here is on Hans Hoffman, who we meet in 1968, cruising for quick sex in bathroom stalls. The film then winds back to 1945 when Hoffman is first imprisoned under Paragraph 175 which criminalized homosexual acts. Over the next twenty-three years, he is arrested more than once for the same cause. Watching another film about the sad plight of queer people in earlier eras can be challenging. Might it not seem time to move on to stories about our (mostly) more enlightened world where homosexual acts are not illegal in most cultured societies? Absolutely, but just like the history of Black Americans, wars, Native Americans, etc. it’s important to recognize our past in hopes that we don’t repeat the travesties of history. There is also something very universal about love and intimacy that can illuminate even some of our darkest moments. Here is a link to a full review I did of the film: https://amovieguy.com/2022/06/great-freedom/.

[djpal]

Corsage (2022) Rating: 6/10
I thought this was a slow, cold and unpleasant, though interesting take, on a princess born in the wrong century. The filmmaker chooses songs from the 1960s (Kris Kristofferson’s Help Me Make It Through the Night, and the Rolling Stones’ As Tears Go By) to reflect the sadness and future liberation for women like this particular princess. I believe they were purposely chosen to also suggest that the struggle women have faced has been universal for centuries and not just limited to “kept” women during a monarchy. It is the universal message of the film (think about the recent protests of the treatment of women in Iran) and the performance of Vicky Krieps as Elisabeth that makes this a somewhat recommended film to those who appreciate such portraits and that can handle the film’s pacing. See my full review: https://palcinema.com/corsage.html.

[mightysparks]

Nitram (2021) 6/10
It offered nothing new to what I already know and disrespected the effect and victims of the actual massacre by skipping over it entirely

I was one of the programmers who gave this film my top support and it is worth mentioning the programmer view on this critical point. Something that the film reports accurately is that Nitram had been inspired by the Dunblane massacre. The view from clinical psychologists has been that if you show people footage of massacres and even the effect of the massacres (sirens, weeping, victim impact statements), you generate copycats. You shouldn't even mention the shooter's name, which is why they don't in the film. Nitram was a copycat and there should never be a copycat of Nitram.

The issue is that for very angry disturbed people, attention and distress in others is exactly what they're looking for. Pictures of crying families is narcotic to them.

I can't speak for everyone, but I'm pretty sure Zzzorf would sign up to these sentiments given our chat on the film festival podcast. If the movie had proceeded like so many of these movies do in showing the violence, and the aftermath, I would never have given it any support.

I do appreciate that it's an emotive topic and we didn't program it lightly.

Yea I know all that stuff I just find skipping over things like that a little annoying (even in true crime when they’re like ‘out of respect for the victims I’m not going to tell you what happened to them’.. so this person had something horrible happen and you’re going to act like it didn’t? Great so respectful). I’m not overly bothered by that in this film and it can be done respectfully and powerfully, I just felt that in this case it didn’t.

[msainy]

3. Ghasideyeh gave sefid / Ballad of a White Cow (2020)

I think this film suffers from dealing with too many heavy topics without being able to give justice to any of them.

First the death penalty. Iran, among most if not all Islamic countries, still murder criminals under certain conditions. While the topic of the morality of capital punishment might be debatable, I hold the belief that it's unjustifiably wrong under any circumstances, Albret Camus's essay on the subject ''Reflections on the Guillotine'' helped me form that opinion. So I got excited when the plot started going on that direction, but then it had to highlight other social issues and didn't dig deep on the matter. We see one of the judges who delivered the sentence trying to make amends for what he did by helping the widow, but he couldn't admit what he did. He regrets murdering her husband, not because the death penalty is wrong morally, but because he was innocence. The judge might have come to realize that capital punishment should be abolished but we never get hints on that except through passing remarks.

And then the plot pivots to show how hard women's' lives can be in Iran, but we saw many other films on the subject that did it more elegantly, the work of Panahi comes to mind, so I couldn't see anything special here.

Sure the film has it's moments, I especially liked the thunderstorm scene in the dark house or the random cow in the opening shot. The scene near the end where the camera pans to hide the action and make the emotional transformation stronger was incredibly beautiful. But ultimately I think more (or less in this case) could've been to make a more engaging film.
Rating: 6/10

[Obgeoff]

Strong solid start to the festival for me.

Playground (2021, Wandel) 7.2
Clear boundaries on the design of the film. Only school, everything centred on having the little girl in the frame (or at least the scene). Superb performance by the seven year-old (as a dad of a 7yo, I can't imagine my son or any of his friends being able to give that performance). Good at building up tension and a sense of horror. Unfortunately, the narrative elements didn't hang together, I felt it either needed more subtlety and time to breathe or a shorter runtime. Very promising debut though.

Apples (2020, Nikou) 8.0
Wry. Found it offputting to start and it took me a little time to really engage in the artifice. I agree with the reading of msainy's spoiler (and found that very moving). The instructional tapes were at times hilarious and at others really sinister. Have queued up Fingernails for after the festival.

Ballad of a White Cow (2020, Moghadam/Sanaeeha) 6.6
As msainy says, quite a bit being tackled in this and as a result, none being as interesting as they could be. Off the top of my head: execution, wrongful execution, working single mother, deaf daughter, poor father/son relationship, military service, suicide, worker exploitation, Iranian justice system, religious police, brother-in-law (I think) interference, oppression of woman, blood money, impersonation, poisoning. Very well shot and I'll add the (presumably) religious police interrogation of the judge to msainy's list of positives.

Corsage (2022, Kreutzer) 7.0
The only film of the main slate that was already on my watchlist. Absolutely beautiful cinematography at times, particularly when Sisi was distant from the Emperor. It's difficult to make an engaging film when the core character is bored and anxious and has many faults of her own. Her relationship with her children was the most interesting to me - I wish we could have seen more of her with her daughter in particular.

[matthewscott8]

3. Ghasideyeh gave sefid / Ballad of a White Cow (2020)

I think this film suffers from dealing with too many heavy topics without being able to give justice to any of them.

First the death penalty. Iran, among most if not all Islamic countries, still murder criminals under certain conditions. While the topic of the morality of capital punishment might be debatable, I hold the belief that it's unjustifiably wrong under any circumstances, Albret Camus's essay on the subject ''Reflections on the Guillotine'' helped me form that opinion. So I got excited when the plot started going on that direction, but then it had to highlight other social issues and didn't dig deep on the matter. We see one of the judges who delivered the sentence trying to make amends for what he did by helping the widow, but he couldn't admit what he did. He regrets murdering her husband, not because the death penalty is wrong morally, but because he was innocence. The judge might have come to realize that capital punishment should be abolished but we never get hints on that except through passing remarks.

And then the plot pivots to show how hard women's' lives can be in Iran, but we saw many other films on the subject that did it more elegantly, the work of Panahi comes to mind, so I couldn't see anything special here.

Sure the film has it's moments, I especially liked the thunderstorm scene in the dark house or the random cow in the opening shot. The scene near the end where the camera pans to hide the action and make the emotional transformation stronger was incredibly beautiful. But ultimately I think more (or less in this case) could've been to make a more engaging film.
Rating: 6/10

the cow is the symbol for the executed man. In the surah, Moses commands a cow to be slaughtered in order to discover the truth about a murder.

Spoiler

in the movie the execution of the man leads to the identification of the correct culprit

. It's a rather forced analogy

Spoiler

the executed man appears to have been no saint, having in fact beaten the victim, whilst the cow in the surah is meant to be pure

. I do think you are right about oppressed Iranian women being a genre that this doesn't stand out from.

[matthewscott8]

Corsage (2022, Kreutzer) 7.0
The only film of the main slate that was already on my watchlist. Absolutely beautiful cinematography at times, particularly when Sisi was distant from the Emperor. It's difficult to make an engaging film when the core character is bored and anxious and has many faults of her own. Her relationship with her children was the most interesting to me - I wish we could have seen more of her with her daughter in particular.

The contrast with the daughter is interesting because the daughter appears to have no problems at all conforming to required duties and timetables. Whilst recognising the dangers of pathologizing it did feel loosely like Sissi as portrayed in this film was manic depressive. It shows how insane abitratily making people monarchs based on birth is, she's not remotely suited to it.

[msainy]

the cow is the symbol for the executed man. In the surah, Moses commands a cow to be slaughtered in order to discover the truth about a murder.

Spoiler

in the movie the execution of the man leads to the identification of the correct culprit

. It's a rather forced analogy

Spoiler

the executed man appears to have been no saint, having in fact beaten the victim, whilst the cow in the surah is meant to be pure

. I do think you are right about oppressed Iranian women being a genre that this doesn't stand out from.

I didn't catch that even though I'm familiar with Quran it makes sense now. Something I find weird though is that the cow in the text was specifically mentioned to be shiny yellow (like maybe gold?) so why call the film white cow? Maybe to imply purity or innocence.

[blocho]

I'll post my reaction to the only movie in this slate I had already seen. My write-up below was originally posted during the Queer Challenge in June. I've since added Great Freedom to my 500<400 list.

Great Freedom (2021)
A man in West Germany is imprisoned for homosexuality three separate times, in 1945, 1957, and 1968. Each time, he encounters an initially homophobic prisoner with whom he eventually develops an intimate relationship. This is an extraordinary movie, entirely matter of fact about prison and sexuality, two topics usually sensationalized on screen but here presented with superlative authenticity and excellent acting, especially from Franz Rogowski in the lead role. This would have easily made my list for the prison movies poll we did earlier this year.

Incidentally, the late Peter Brotzmann has a cameo, blasting away with some free jazz in the final scene, which offers an ironic explanation of the title.

9/10

[msainy]

The instructional tapes were at times hilarious and at others really sinister.

That dude's voice was SO deep I thought it was a robot at first huge potential that should be utilized.

Have queued up Fingernails for after the festival.

Thanks for the tip.

[hurluberlu]

Mila / Apples (2020)
Greece, Christos Nikou

I watched it almost 2.5 years ago and I dont recall it fully. I do remember liking the story a lot - viewer's ambivalence about the hero's honnesty is what the script is mainly playing with, imo. This is more the type of story that would make a good book rather than a good film as it goes along with very intimate thinking and feeling but somehow director did a good job in conveying the various states of confusion of the main protagonist by playing with light and colors.
7+ (seen before the festival)

Reviews

Centrepiece - Un monde / Playground (2021)
Belgium, Laura Wandel (F)

Great camera work, reminiscent of the best back-to-the-camera and close shots drama films seen in recent years (from Nemes, Bellochio, DHont, Brizé), only in a school environment at height of kids. We are locked up with the insurmountable dilemma of daily bullying as experienced by the protagonists and feel with them all the intensity of their despair. On the other end, I somehow found the characters a little prisoner of the script with no relief from the school routine and bullying time (or the threat and perception of). Home could have been an interesting counterpoint, especially with an unemployed father. With its sole focus on school time, it does also look like a case study on harassment funded by educational authorities.
7-

Mila / Apples (2020)
Greece, Christos Nikou

I watched it almost 2.5 years ago and I dont recall it fully. I do remember liking the story a lot - viewer's ambivalence about the hero's honnesty is what the script is mainly playing with, imo. This is more the type of story that would make a good book rather than a good film as it goes along with very intimate thinking and feeling but somehow director did a good job in conveying the various states of confusion of the main protagonist by playing with light and colors.
7+ (seen before the festival)

[matthewscott8]

the cow is the symbol for the executed man. In the surah, Moses commands a cow to be slaughtered in order to discover the truth about a murder.

Spoiler

in the movie the execution of the man leads to the identification of the correct culprit

. It's a rather forced analogy

Spoiler

the executed man appears to have been no saint, having in fact beaten the victim, whilst the cow in the surah is meant to be pure

. I do think you are right about oppressed Iranian women being a genre that this doesn't stand out from.

I didn't catch that even though I'm familiar with Quran it makes sense now. Something I find weird though is that the cow in the text was specifically mentioned to be shiny yellow (like maybe gold?) so why call the film white cow? Maybe to imply purity or innocence.

So I think when the filmmakers have used the Cow surah they didn't make a brilliant metaphor, I had a scan around the internet and other people have mentioned that too, for example https://www.hkaff.asia/en/news/2021/detail/37

The cow in the surah is specified as having to be without blemish. I don't know if maybe white stands in for that, or if they just couldn't get a yellow cow.

The folks who sacrificed the cows in the Quran were really hesitant to do it. That they did is essentially an example of blind faith, which is rewarded. When Reza interacts with another judge following the incident, the other judge mentions the Quran, Mohamed applied sentences based on the testimony of two witnesses. Reza, also applied a sentence based on the testimony of two witnesses. Therefore one view would be that Reza has done nothing wrong, Allah allowed for a man to be killed on the testimony of those two witnesses, and so Reza was just submitting to his will. The system isn't exactly there to protect the innocent and punish the good, it's there to fulfil Allah's will. So when Reza is questioning whether he's done anything wrong, he's basically questioning the Quran.

[Obgeoff]

Interesting perspective Matthew. My (Western) interpretation was that he was warned because he was effectively questioning the rule of law and the Iranian judiciary and power system. I didn’t get that he was implicitly questioning the word of Allah which would give his colleague more reasons to think he was right rather than just heartlessly acting for the system.

[mightysparks]

Maryjki (2020) 6/10
Very pretty looking film with a nice vibe and an intriguing lead actor. Unfortunately there isn't much going on narratively and it dwindles towards the end with a weird dinner scene that left me cold. Not a bad film, there's just not enough meat here.

[matthewscott8]

Maryjki (2020) 6/10
Very pretty looking film with a nice vibe and an intriguing lead actor. Unfortunately there isn't much going on narratively and it dwindles towards the end with a weird dinner scene that left me cold. Not a bad film, there's just not enough meat here.

Haha that dinner scene was my favourite scene, did a bit of thigh slapping. Still, I had other problems, there was a scene in the supermarket where she started using animals inappropriately that I've tried to forget as best I can.

[msainy]

4. Corsage (2022)
While it's obvious that no one will connect to a 19th century rich queen who, upon reflecting on her restlessness and boredom, said ''you'd feel the same if your only duty was having your hair braided'' however this particular queen is very relatable in her struggle against the futility of life. After turning forty she still can't find her purpose, everything bores her eventually, her children are criticizing her behavior, and in her dopamine pursuit the only thing that scratched her itch was recreational drugs, after which she finally stops giving a fuck and just lives the life she wants.

We have a saying in Arabic that roughly translates to ''Who watches out for others will die worried'' and in the queen's words ''A lion doesn't lose sleep over what the sheep say'' so it was satisfying when

Spoiler

she cut her hair, and the reaction of her friends (helpers?) was hilarious ''this was my life's work''

The film is also pleasant aesthetically, the costume, scenery, and sets are as good as what you'd expect from a 19th century Europe period drama (not Barry Lyndon or The Leopard good, but still pretty) and the music is extremely appropriate in a weird way.

I also like the performance of Vicky Krieps, only saw her in Phantom Thread before, and she left a strong impression on me in both films.


She can pull a cool Jeanne Moreau
Rating: 7/10

[peeptoad]

Here are my ratings for the Audience Award (aside from Ninjababy, which I can't find).
With the exceptions of Playground, Marygoround and Girl from the Other Side I'd seen all of these prior to the festival. In the cases of Great Freedom and Corsage it was awhile ago. Great Freedom, in particular, probably deserves another watch, but my internet is down right now so... that won't happen soon.

All in all it was a great main slate selection.
I thought Playground was a worthy centerpiece. Until I saw that one yesterday (thankfully before the internet outage) Nitram was actually my top film of these though. Both were great views.

Maya Vanderbeque was fantastic in Playground. That was really her show, as I think someone else posted. She's in practically every frame and did a stellar job; very convincing. I liked that it focused solely on the schoolyard/school setting with regards to the runtime. A longer film would have left me wanting to see more of the kids' home lives and relationship with their father. It still would have been good to get a little more from the father though in terms of learning more about him as a character, but it's also fine as is. The adults really were kind of clueless and that added some additional realism to the events because, at that age, from a kid's perspective, they really truly are oblivious... even when aware of the physicality and concreteness of it all. The adults not being able to penetrate the world of the youngsters may be one of the key points here. They see, but they fail to truly comprehend, even though they were once kids themselves. Aside from that, bullying perpetuates itself ... so kudos to Nora for breaking the cycle.

Un monde/Playground (2021) 8
Nitram (2021) 8
Totsukuni no shôjo / The Girl from the Other Side (2022) 7+
Große Freiheit / Great Freedom (2021) 7+
The Timekeepers Of Eternity (2021) 7
Corsage (2022) 7-
Ghasideyeh gave sefid / Ballad of a White Cow (2020) 7-
Mila / Apples (2020) 6+
Maryjki /Marygoround (2020) 6

[msainy]

aside from Ninjababy, which I can't find

Mod edit: please don't discuss torrents etc.

[matthewscott8]

Ninjababy is on several streaming servcies too

[peeptoad]

Ninjababy is on several streaming servcies too

According to JustWatch it's not any streaming service currently in the US. But I am only going by the JW site...

[matthewscott8]

Ninjababy is on several streaming servcies too

According to JustWatch it's not any streaming service currently in the US. But I am only going by the JW site...

ah ok it must be regional. It's on about 6 streaming services in the UK

[djpal]

Here are a few of my other ratings:

Playground (2021) 8/10
Sad and disturbing but very effective drama

Ballad of the White Cow (2020) 8/10
Big fan of Iranian cinema. This one questions whether these two characters can be happy given the circumstances. Decision at the end was a bit sad but perhaps understandable.

The Timekeepers of Eternity (2021) 6/10
There's something original about what this filmmaker attempts to do: rework a mini-series and Stephen King story into a feature film! It's Twilight Zone meets David Lynch! While visually interesting, it's hard to take seriously so much melodrama and over the top acting.

Ninjababy (2021) 8/10
I like the tone and attitude of this film. While it's a bit "Juno" the film has an original perspective and some cool animated images.

Marygoround (2020) 7/10
Interesting but strange set of encounters in this film. I like its audacity but can't say I love where it went.

Still need to see The Girl From the Other side and Nitram. I saw Apples a couple of years ago and loved it but need to see it again before I give my rating.

[blocho]

Nitram (2021)
If you excise the final ten minutes from this movie, the result is a compelling drama about a young man who suffers from mental illness. In many ways, he has the emotions of a child, incapable of understanding the consequences of his actions. When frustrated, he lashes out, often violently. He is also depressed and has an affection for guns and firecrackers. His inability to interact well with most others is highlighted by the masterful acting of lead Caleb Landry Jones and several other supporting players.

But, of course, it’s impossible to ignore the final ten minutes because this is not a fictional drama but rather a portrait of the prelude to an infamous and heinous crime. A lot of people will find this objectionable for focusing only on the perpetrator and offering him a measure of sympathy. I haven’t thought deeply enough about the topic to determine my own feelings about such portrayals of perpetrators, but I have to admit it makes me feel queasy. Still, I understand Matthew’s counterpoint above about the movie not depicting the actual carnage.

7/10

[blocho]

Corsage (2022)
Part of my distaste here is just personal preference. Absent any involvement with statecraft, I find stories about royalty deeply uninteresting. Because without that connection with government, stories about royalty are really just stories about the idle rich. And stories about the idle rich only work if they are farce.

Is this a farce? I don’t think that’s the intention, and yet so much here makes so little sense that it’s hard to not see it as such. I don’t understand the intentional anachronisms. I don’t understand the title. I don’t understand the ending. I don’t understand what the filmmakers were going for. I suspect they meant this to be an empowering story about a woman liberating herself from patriarchal confines, but if that’s the case, I think they picked the wrong subject and went about it in a strange way.

3/10

[matthewscott8]

I suspect they meant this to be an empowering story about a woman liberating herself from patriarchal confines

I don't think the Sisi here liberates herself, you can't fight the austro hungarian empire. She also does a lot of shitty things to other people in the story, including other women, that doesn't feel like it's part of some empowerment message. Some of the movie is about an attitude I guess, which is why I try and talk about the movie in the context of punk. She can't win but she can put the middle finger up. She can't change anything but she can power dress (that's where the title of the movie comes from).

I think it's also important to point out that she's bipolar, it's mostly a genetic condition i.e. not caused by the patriarchy), and it's interesting how she lives with that. She does actually have a huge amount of freedom, she just rocks up at places all the time and has people waiting on her. At that time there were very few women on the planet who could do that (or men). So she can just rock up at Ludwig's and drink molten chocolate. That freedom helps her to live with the condition.

I guess a single word review of the movie would be: defiance.

[blocho]

you can't fight the austro hungarian empire.

Prussia would disagree!

She also does a lot of shitty things to other people in the story, including other women, that doesn't feel like it's part of some empowerment message. Some of the movie is about an attitude I guess, which is why I try and talk about the movie in the context of punk. She can't win but she can put the middle finger up. She can't change anything but she can power dress (that's where the title of the movie comes from).

I think it's also important to point out that she's bipolar, it's mostly a genetic condition i.e. not caused by the patriarchy), and it's interesting how she lives with that. She does actually have a huge amount of freedom, she just rocks up at places all the time and has people waiting on her. At that time there were very few women on the planet who could do that (or men). So she can just rock up at Ludwig's and drink molten chocolate. That freedom helps her to live with the condition.

I had a lot of similar thoughts while watching it, which is why I felt like if it was an empowerment movie, it went awry. She is very rude to to her servants. She treats her children poorly. And even though she is subject to sexism, she is probably more free than any other woman in the world in the 1870s. So it doesn't make much sense as a story of empowerment (especially given the ending). In which case, I'm not sure what it is, although your punk interpretation makes sense.

I didn't pick up on her being bipolar. This is part of the historical record, I guess? I don't think it's clear in the movie.

I guess a single word review of the movie would be: defiance.

I'm kind of tickled by the idea of limiting myself to a single-word reaction to a movie. For this one, I think I would go with: confused. Or maybe: spoiled.

[matthewscott8]

She's typically referred to as having "Sisi Syndrome", which has its own Wikipedia page in German. People have mentioned depression, anorexia, melancholy, introversion, ADHD, bipolar and manic depressive, all in relation to her.

Here's Marie Kreutzer and Vicky Krieps talking about the movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-vQEcyLcyw

Marie K is drawn to creating complex women characters, she talks also about how it's very easy for audiences to hate women characters, and showing Sisi's faults as well is a defiance of this. We don't have to hate Sisi because she struggles as a mother or let's power get to her head and ignores the appeal of a lady in waiting.

[msainy]

5. Große Freiheit / Great Freedom (2021)
Cruel and heartbreaking, with incredible performance by the lead actor Franz Rogowski. It's immediately obvious that a strong point of this film is how we never leave the prison throughout the years. We see the protagonist in three different timelines, each time imprisoned for being gay, and how his character develop between sentences. The first time he's lost and rebellious, the second he's in love and tries to work out his relationship with his partner, and the third he has accepted the hopelessness of his situation.

The thing I liked the most was the weird friendship with his inmate, who served a long sentence through the three imprisonment of the protagonist. Oh and that ending too.

Rating: 7/10

[blocho]

She's typically referred to as having "Sisi Syndrome", which has its own Wikipedia page in German. People have mentioned depression, anorexia, melancholy, introversion, ADHD, bipolar and manic depressive, all in relation to her.

Here's Marie Kreutzer and Vicky Krieps talking about the movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-vQEcyLcyw

Marie K is drawn to creating complex women characters, she talks also about how it's very easy for audiences to hate women characters, and showing Sisi's faults as well is a defiance of this. We don't have to hate Sisi because she struggles as a mother or let's power get to her head and ignores the appeal of a lady in waiting.

Thanks for providing this added context.