TOP PICKS OF THE FEST: PLATO'S CAVE
Plato’s Cave is a Triple R (3RRR 102.7FM) film criticism podcast presented by Melbourne-based film critics Thomas Caldwell, Tara Judah and Josh Nelson. Each week the team record a half hour show where they take a critical eye to recent cinema and DVD releases, followed up by a debate on an issue relating to film and film criticism. Informed, passionate, accessible and fun; Plato’s Cave is a must for all serious and not-so-serious cinephiles. During MIFF the team will also broadcast a live show from 7pm-8pm during Triple R’s Max Headroom hour on Thursday 28 July.
Subscribe to the Plato's Cave Podcast at www.rrr.org.au
Top ten films/events at MIFF we’re collectively most excited about
Autoluminesscent: Rowland S. Howard
Who else is better qualified to have made a documentary about the great Melbourne singer/songwriter Rowland S Howard than Richard Lowenstein? One of Australia’s most vibrant filmmakers, Lowenstein’s masterpiece Dogs in Space encapsulated the late 1970s post-punk scene in Melbourne, which Howard was a key part of.
After the three films that make up The Orphic Trilogy, Beauty and the Beast is Jean Cocteau’s most well known film. Having the opportunity to see this 1946 avant-garde imagining of the classic fairy tale on the big screen is a rare treat. It’s essential viewing for lovers of dream-like cinema rather than fans of animated singing teapots.
Veteran documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman’s latest work offers a glimpse into the lives of the diverse participants within a suburban gymnasium in Austin, Texas. Following screenings at the Cannes, Toronto and New York film festivals, this documentary has been highly anticipated.
Japanese director Sion Sono (The Suicide Club, Love Exposure) has a penchant for pushing audiences outside of their comfort zones and this film about a tropical fish salesman who makes a deal with a couple and gets more than he bargained for seems no exception. Billed as a blood-soaked black comedy this should be a memorable ride.
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, the Belgium brothers known for their slow, carefully constructed lower social class realism return in 2011 with another film about a young boy trying to come to terms with the stark realities of life. Meditative and often provocative after the fact, the Dardennes have over the years crafted their very own brand of accomplished yet unsettling filmmaking. And this year it comes with a bike.
Since his public exile from this year’s Cannes film festival, cinematic enfant terrible Lars Von Trier’s new film, a relationship drama between two sisters (Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg) set against the apocalyptic scenario of Earth colliding with another planet has created a storm of publicity. Given the controversial brilliance of his last MIFF appearance (Antichrist 2009) this should be a talking point of the festival.
Part of the pleasures of attending MIFF is seeing truly weird and wonderful films that you rarely get to see of the big screen otherwise. The films of Czech animator and filmmaker Jan Švankmajer always fit that bill so his new comedy is naturally a must. It combines cutout animation with live action and is about a guy meeting the woman of his dreams in one of his dreams. Of course.
Apparently this is the final film by Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr, whose 2000 film Werckmeister Harmonies was listed by UK film journal Sight and Sound as one of the 30 most influential films of the 2000s. Inspired by the event that reportedly drove Nietzsche mad, The Turin Horse has been described as a visually striking depiction of peasant life. Long, meditative and screening late, we want to be part of the We Saw The Turin Horse at MIFF and Survived Club. Plus it sounds amazing.
MIFF are calling this ‘an ambitious follow up to The Chaser’, and if they’re right then this film might just be the greatest dramatic thriller of 2011. A taxi driver whose wife has been missing for six months agrees to carry out a hit in exchange for her whereabouts. This is the second feature written and directed by Na Hong-Jin and if his first is anything to go by, then this film promises a dark, gritty, nail-biting glimpse into the depraved depths of the Korean crime world.
Peter Tscherkassky might not be a household name, but he’s certainly a celebrity within the world of experimental filmmaking. One of the most exciting and talented filmmakers in his field – not to mention a well versed film critic in his own right - Tscherkassky is a guest of the festival and, along with an absolute must-see programme of sublime works of visual art, Peter will be running a Masterclass event, talking through his process of ‘dark room’ filmmaking. This is a rare and wonderful opportunity to experience and understand the visual and visceral abilities of the film medium.