CineSkinny 17 February 2013

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FREE SUNDAY 17 FEBRUARY THE OFFICAL GFF DAILY GUIDE WWW.THESKINNY.CO.UK/CINESKINNY

WHAT’S INSIDE?

GFF BOX OFFICEOrder tickets from the box office atwww.glasgowfilmfestival.org.uk

or call0141 332 6535or visitGlasgow Film Theatre12 Rose Street, Glasgow, G3 6RB

[email protected]

2 — TODAY’S PICKS Where we tell you what to watch

and what to think

2 — WADJDA Soon to be part of a ‘how do you pronounce that?’ double bill with Woyzeck

3 — REVIEWSThe Paperboy Wadjda Something in the Air

4 — WHAT’S NEW ONLINE Apparently there’s this new thing called The Google

4 — PICS OF THE DAY We had a great picture of Kate Middleton, but decided on something more relevant

4 — WHAT DO YOU THINK? Tweet with the hashtag #gff and you too could be in the CineSkinny

Produced by The Skinny magazine in association with the Glasgow Film Festival

Editors Lewis Porteous Jamie DunnDesigner Marianne Wilson Digital Nathanael SmithDeputy Editor Josh Slater-Williams

CLOUD ATLAS PUTS GLASGOW ON THE MAPCloud Atlas, which has its first UK public screening at GFF, isn’t the only big release this year to have used GLASGOW as a filming locationWORDS: NICOLA BALKIND

THE HEAVILY anticipated Cloud Atlas is set to receive its first UK screening at Glasgow Film Festival this weekend. Star James D’Arcy will be in attendance to promote the film, a collaboration between the box office bother-ing Wachowski siblings and Run Lola Run director Tom Tykwer. Adapted from David Mitchell’s best-selling novel, the film is set across many centuries and world locations, and boasts turns from a plethora of the planet’s most popular actors.

It’s no coincidence that the movie should debut in Glasgow, as one of its myriad segments was shot in the city during 2011, the year that saw three big name productions pass through the city, all of which are based on novels and due for imminent release. World War Z, starring Brad Pitt and hundreds of Glaswegian zombie extras, transformed George Square into an apocalyptic Philadelphia. The adaptation of Scottish resident Michel Faber’s Under the Skin, meanwhile, set Scarlett

Johansson loose in a variety of local spots.

The production of Cloud Atlas presented the city centre’s finan-cial district south of Blythswood Square and around Montrose Street as 1970s San Francisco. Its steep hills and unassuming architecture provide the perfect backdrop for the vintage cars and trucks seen idling in nearby car parks along the south-west corner of the city centre. For audience members, spilling out of the GFT onto the set of the film will surely be a unique experience.

During the shooting, Halle Berry and Jim Broadbent were spotted enjoying their leisure time in the city, though little was seen of the shy and retiring co-directors. A truly international production, Glasgow can’t take full responsi-bility for Cloud Atlas’ aesthetics but there’s no denying it has made yet another strong addition to its growing resumé as a prime filmmaking location.17 FEB– GFT 1 @ 19.15

18 FEB –GFT1 @ 3.15

Cinema City: Glasgow’s Film Locations Saturday 23 February (17.00), Free Celebrate the book launch of World Film Locations: Glasgow by joining this discus-sion of our Cinema City. World Film Locations series editor Gabriel Solomons, Glasgow volume editor Nicola Balkind and other contributors will be present to reflect on the city’s heritage as a haven for filmmakers and film-lovers alike, as well as its growing capital within Hollywood.

CINEMA CITY LOCATIONS: 23 FEB – TERRACE BAR, CCA @ 17.OO

Living Apart Together Sunday 24 February (13:15) A screening of Glasgow-set Living Apart To-gether, restored and re-released by Park Circus, will coincide with the book launch for World Film Locations: Glasgow. The book will be introduced by editors Nicola Balkind and Gabriel Solomons at this event.

LIVING APART TOGETHER: 24 FEB – GFT2 @ 3.15

CLOUD ATLAS

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IT’S ALREADY quite an achievement for a filmmaker to make a great debut film in a country that closed down all cinemas in the 1970s, but when one considers that the director is a woman, and that the country she hails from is Saudi Arabia, it’s hard to believe that this movie even exists. Haifaa al-Mansour’s Wadjda is a tale of female independence that explores the oppression of women in Saudi society through the eyes of a headstrong ten-year-old girl whose only desire is to buy a bike so she can go riding with her male friend. In a country where women’s rights are severely restricted, the emergence of this touching and illuminating film feels like a radical moment for cinema in the Middle East.

Haifaa al-Mansour certainly doesn’t look like a revolutionary fig-ure and the petite, cheerful director chuckles when I suggest Wadjda is a feminist breakthrough. “I don’t try to be a feminist, but if I am a feminist then that’s good,” she says. “I don’t try to make a film for a message, I make a film for a story. But for sure, women’s rights and women’s issues in Saudi Arabia is a big thing, and as a woman living there I want to tell stories about myself and my sisters, and I want the situation to change. I have a daughter and I want her to have a better life, I want people to respect her, I want her to feel she has ownership of things, and I feel Saudi Arabia still has a long way to go for that to happen. Women still need to fight more, to stick together, to voice their demands, and making films is one of the ways to do that. But I just want to make films that I feel and relate to – stories from my world – rather than making a film that is feminist.”

Al-Mansour has been telling such female-led stories through television and short film work, and she is a polarising figure in her homeland, celebrated by progressive Saudis and viewed with suspicion in more conservative quarters. The strange tension that exists between the country’s old and new viewpoints can be seen in the fact that al-Mansour received backing from King Abdullah to make the film but

still had to hide in the back of a van when shooting on location. “The people who live in this conservative culture think that TV is corrupt and women should not appear on TV, they should stay at home. So if they don’t accept that, then for sure they won’t accept a woman coming into their neighbourhood to make a film,” she says. “While I wanted to make the film I also wanted to respect the culture, because the ultimate goal is just to make a film, not to create conflict with people.” In fact, what al-Mansour really wants to create is a conversation. “I am also trying to engage them in a dialogue, I don’t try to push them aside,” she explains. “I respect them and I want them to respect me so we can talk and we can influence each other. I’m sure a lot of people think women like me threaten their society or their values, but that’s not the case.”

Right now, the director just wants people to see her film. She is trying to arrange cultural screenings in public centres, so they can see the human face she is putting on Saudi society. Beyond that, al-Mansour hopes that she can be the first of many making their voices heard. “It

takes a lot of courage to make a film, to put yourself out there, especially in a place like Saudi Arabia which has such peer pressure and is so tribal and collective. It is very hard for someone to think as an individual. If this film is a success I hope it encourages more production and funding in more local talent.”

Whether Saudi cinema has a bright future or not remains to be seen, but al-Mansour firmly believes that the country is moving in the right direction, as its younger generations push for a modernised Saudi Arabia. “There is a gap between religion and culture, and people are changing a lot,” she explains. “Five years ago, people were so strongly against any kind of culture or entertainment, and now the percentage of people shifting towards wanting films and theatre is increasing day by day. A lot of it is down to young people. I think Saudi Arabia is 65% or 70% young, so those people are responsi-ble for making a change.”17 FEB – CINEWORLD @ 21.15

24 FEB– CINEWORLD @ 15.30

GLASGOWFILM.ORG/FESTIVAL/WHATS_ON/4712_WADJDA

TODAY’S PICKSHEAVEN’S GATE12.45 @ CINEWORLDThe film that singlehandedly sank United Artists! Indulged by the studio in the wake of The Deer Hunter’s success, Michael Cimino’s historic flop is a fascinating portrait of an unfocussed talent. With gorgeous cinematography and a moving tale of class conflict, it’s time it was reassessed.

PRIME TIME SOAP19.00 @ GFT 2The Festival’s Brazilian strand continues with this comic melodrama about a prostitute who finds herself in an awkward situation when a client dies. Kitschy with flavours of Almodóvar, this should be one of the most riotously fun films in the festival.

AURICLE ENSEMBLE 19.30 @ THE OLD FRUITMARKETThe Old Fruitmarket will host this twenty piece band as they perform a live score to the 1939 documentary The City. Also featuring live narration, short films and an introductory talk, this is an unmissable experience.

THE PAPERBOY18.45 @ CINEWORLDLee Daniels’ film debuted at Cannes and ever since has sparked a blaze of critical debate. Some adored it, others hated it and many were just confused. Where will you stand?

THE HAPPY LANDS13.40 @ GFT 1Director Robert Rae will be in attendance at this screening of the industrial action drama set in Fife. While its action takes place in 1926, local cast members and archive footage ensure that it will resonate with modern audiences.

QUIET REVOLUTION HAIFAA AL-MANSOUR’s Wadjda is remarkable on several levels. Not only is it a sparkling feature debut, it’s also the first film to be entirely shot within Saudi Arabia. We speak to the director ahead of its GFF screenings

Be the star in your own movie

Let Stow College play a supporting role T: 0844 249 8585

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CREATIVE INDUSTRIESSCIENCE, HEALTH & CAREENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGYBUSINESS & CONTINUING EDUCATION

WADJDA

PRIME TIME SOAP

HEAVENS GATE

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REVIEWSTHE PAPERBOYDIRECTOR: LEE DANIELSSTARRING: MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY, ZAC EFRON, NICOLE KIDMAN, JOHN CUSACK, DAVID OYELOWO, SCOTT GLENN, MACY GRAY

WADJDADIRECTOR: HAIFAA AL-MANSOURSTARRING: WAAD MOHAMMED, REEM ABDULLAH, AHD, SULTAN AL ASSAF, ABDULLRAHMAN AL GOHANI

SOMETHING IN THE AIR (APRÈS MAI)DIRECTOR: OLIVIER ASSAYASSTARRING: CLÉMENT MÉTAYER, LOLA CRÉTON, HUGO CONZELMANN, LÉA ROUGERON, FÉLIX ARMAND, CAROLE COMBES, INDIA SALVOR MENUEZ

It’s late 60’s Florida and in the midst of a summer so hot that “God himself must’ve been sweating”, a small-town sheriff is murdered. Hillary Van Wetter (Cusack) will go to the chair for the crime unless local investigative reporter Ward Jansen (McConnaughey) - aided by brother Jack and oversexed convict groupie Charlotte (Kidman) - can prove otherwise. Heat sears through the screen as the muggy murder mystery converges with a young man’s sexual coming-of-age; a first love forged in the salty fires of piss on a jellyfish sting.

Director Lee Daniels tenaciously fos-ters the same provocative, naturalistic atmosphere that won Precious so many plaudits, and his cast is faultless. Cusack

in particular impresses as sleazy swamp-dwelling Hillary. However, strong turns and sharp-edged characterisation fail to mollify the lingering feeling that this is a fairly by-the-numbers noir procedural dressed up with some charged sexual and racial politics. The Paperboy hints at something great, but squint past the trickles of perspiration and you’re left wanting. [John Nugent]

17 FEB - CINEWORLD 18 @ 18.45


GLASGOWFILM.ORG/FESTIVAL/WHATS_ON/4814_THE_PAPERBOY

Set in 1971, Something in the Air is French filmmaker Olivier Assayas’ ebullient tribute to the kids who had to follow in the footsteps of those student firebrands who helped bring his country to a standstill in the summer of 1968. It centres on Gilles (Métayer), a mop-haired teen who wants to change the world but doesn’t quite know how. Political, artistic, nonchalantly handsome – he’s essentially the kind of gloriously pretentious Frenchman that would send knees quivering if he

turned up at your secondary school on a cross-channel exchange.

Gilles is clearly a thinly veiled version of Assayas, who also missed out on the generation-defining strikes of ‘68 (he would have been 13 at the time), and authentic autobiographical detail is what makes Something in the Air sing. Politics with a big ‘P’ can often drown cinema, but in Assayas’ sure hands, the moving image wins out. By the film’s end, individual expression has trumped political collectivism and his onscreen

stand-in has channelled his political ardour into personal filmmaking rather than agitprop. [Jamie Dunn]17 FEB – GFT 1 @ 16.15

18 FEB – GFT 2 @ 13.15

GLASGOWFILM.ORG/FESTIVAL/WHATS_ON/4633_AFTER_MAY_SOMETHING_IN_THE_AIR

Wadjda is the simple tale of a ten year-old girl whose only desire is to buy a bicycle so she can race with her friends. This précis admittedly suggests a minor work, but when you consider that this is a film made in Saudi Arabia and directed by a woman, its true complexity and courage is revealed.

Haifaa al-Mansour’s remark-able debut feature conveys female experience in Saudi Arabia through the eyes of her young title character, played with wonderful spirit and grace by Waad Moham-med. Throughout the picture she exposes us to everyday examples of the oppression that women of all ages face in this particularly patriarchal society. These points are beautifully integrated into her deceptively simple story, the political aspects of which are never allowed to overwhelm the human drama. A satisfying and skilfully made film is always something to celebrate but largely due to the circumstances from which it arose, Wadjda feels like one of the year’s most vital. [Philip Concannon]



GLASGOWFILM.ORG/FESTIVAL/WHATS_ON/4712_WADJDA

THE PAPERBOY

SOMETHING IN THE AIR

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WHAT’S NEW ONLINE?FASHION AT THE FESTThe Skinny previews the Fashion in Film strand at the festival, revealing that there is more to fashion that catwalks and Zoolander.

tinyurl.com/FashionGFF

FIVE DOCUMENTARIESThe truth is stranger than fiction, and there is a wealth of evidence to prove this at GFF this year. Sean Welsh highlights five of the best docs.

tinyurl.com/FiveDocs

DOCTOR WHOWriter Tom MacRae is interviewed by the Daily Record about the 50 Years of Doctor Who event. “at its heart it’s still exactly the same show.”

tinyurl.com/TomMacrae

OLIVIER ASSAYASThe Playlist meet Something in the Air director Olivier Assayas, and talk film criticism, Hollywood and why Truffaut is like The Beatles.

tinyurl.com/OAssayas

MORE THAN JUST MOVIESScotland on Sunday celebrates the diversity of Glasgow Film Festival by taking a closer look at the different strands available. “You don’t even have to like movies to find something in the festival for you.”

tinyurl.com/ScotSunday

CINESKINNY ONLINEWant to browse past issues of the CineSkinny but can’t find a paper copy? Don’t worry, it’s online for your perusal.

tinyurl.com/CineSkinny

@SOMEONEONTWITTERI thought this film was quite good. I’ve seen worse, but also seen better too as well! #GFF #CINESKINNY




@SOMEONEONTWITTERI thought this film was quite good. I’ve seen worse, but also seen bet-ter too as well! #GFF #CINESKINNY


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@BEEWAITS Planning films to see with the midnight society at #GFF13 - stoker, the place beyond the pines and the surprise film all making the cut #GFF #CINESKINNY

@BBCPOLLIEMACOver a thousand volunteers took part in the film The Happy Lands - set in the fife coal mines in 1926. Many played their own grandparents. #GFF #CINESKINNY

@PAULMACGREGOR‘I’m not having any naked men at MY party’ Allison Gardner does not ap-prove of your taking your clothes off @glasgowfilm-fest opening nite #GFF #CINESKINNY

@DANGREEN1989Our-Cloud Atlas to be retitled ‘Cloud Atlas: Have You Read the Book?’ #GFF #CINESKINNY

@PAULCGALLAGHER So we’re all agreed that Trance should be @glasgowfilmfest’s Surprise Movie, right? Good. #GFF #CINESKINNY

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CineSkinny 17 February 2013