Michael Haneke is at his disturbing best, the Coens pull off a great black comedy, and a zombie romp provokes both laughs and screams
Michael Haneke has long been known as a master of menace. From the shocking psycho-drama of Benny's Video through the audience-baiting horrors of Funny Games to the creeping unease of Hidden, Haneke has earned himself a matchless reputation as a deadpan agent provocateur. In The White Ribbon (2009, Artificial Eye, 15), the Austrian writer-director distils the negative energy of all his previous work into a sublimely understated exercise in anxiety. Set in pre-first world war northern Germany, this black-and-white Palme d'Or winner posits a series of quietly threatening incidents which revolve around the children of a small village. Echoing Wolf Rilla's Village of the Damned, Haneke depicts a generation who hold the seeds of catastrophe in their young hands – these are, after all, the children who will...
Michael Haneke has long been known as a master of menace. From the shocking psycho-drama of Benny's Video through the audience-baiting horrors of Funny Games to the creeping unease of Hidden, Haneke has earned himself a matchless reputation as a deadpan agent provocateur. In The White Ribbon (2009, Artificial Eye, 15), the Austrian writer-director distils the negative energy of all his previous work into a sublimely understated exercise in anxiety. Set in pre-first world war northern Germany, this black-and-white Palme d'Or winner posits a series of quietly threatening incidents which revolve around the children of a small village. Echoing Wolf Rilla's Village of the Damned, Haneke depicts a generation who hold the seeds of catastrophe in their young hands – these are, after all, the children who will...
- 3/14/2010
- by Mark Kermode
- The Guardian - Film News
Premieres
To showcase the diversity of contemporary independent cinema, this section offers the latest work from American and international directors and world premieres of highly anticipated films.
Adventureland / U.S. (Director-screenwriter: Greg Mottola)
In 1987, a recent college graduate takes a nowhere job at his local amusement park and discovers the job is perfect preparation for the real world. Cast: Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds, Bill Hader. World premiere
Brooklyn's Finest / U.S. (Director: Antoine Fuqua; screenwriter: Michael C. Martin)
After enduring vastly different career paths, three unconnected Brooklyn cops wind up at the same deadly location. Cast: Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes, Don Cheadle, Ellen Barkin. World premiere
Earth Days / U.S. (Director: Robert Stone)
The history of our environmental undoing through the eyes of nine Americans whose work and actions launched the modern environmental movement. World premiere, closing-night film
Endgame / U.K. (Director: Pete Travis; screenwriter: Paula Milne)
A...
To showcase the diversity of contemporary independent cinema, this section offers the latest work from American and international directors and world premieres of highly anticipated films.
Adventureland / U.S. (Director-screenwriter: Greg Mottola)
In 1987, a recent college graduate takes a nowhere job at his local amusement park and discovers the job is perfect preparation for the real world. Cast: Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds, Bill Hader. World premiere
Brooklyn's Finest / U.S. (Director: Antoine Fuqua; screenwriter: Michael C. Martin)
After enduring vastly different career paths, three unconnected Brooklyn cops wind up at the same deadly location. Cast: Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes, Don Cheadle, Ellen Barkin. World premiere
Earth Days / U.S. (Director: Robert Stone)
The history of our environmental undoing through the eyes of nine Americans whose work and actions launched the modern environmental movement. World premiere, closing-night film
Endgame / U.K. (Director: Pete Travis; screenwriter: Paula Milne)
A...
- 12/4/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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