denicek@kviff.com

Tomorrow’s programstrana/page 8, 9, 10

Works in Progress get a helping hand

strana/page 2

Jean-Pierre Melville, a master of noir in color

strana/page 4

ENGLISH SECTION

day

6DIVÁCKÁ CENA / AUDIENCE AWARDDENÍKUVote for the best film of the 47th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival!

strana/page 2

Wednesday, July 4, 2012 free • strana / page 1

Festival DailyTHE OFFICIAL ENGLISH DAILY OF THE 47TH KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

SPECIAL EDITION OF

Subrata AcharyaDirector, Spring in the Air

Veronika Bednářová

Born and bred New YorkerKenneth Lonergan is finally atKVIFF with Margaret, a critical-ly acclaimed film about a teenagegirl who feels responsible fora fatal traffic accident. Dubbed bysome to be “a contender for bestAmerican film of the young cen-tury,” it took several years andmany cuts to complete. n You have come to KVIFF

with your daughter who is nowapproaching her teenage years.Does the absent father in thefilm reflect your relationshipwith your daughter at all?

No, not really. That father isvery removed, not just from herbut from everything, I think. I’mmore like the girl in the film. n It’s easy to write about

something you know, right?Yes, but it’s impossible to write

about oneself directly. Withoutthe transformation into some oth-er person you see yourself asa non-being to whom things hap-pen. And it’s not interesting. Buta 17-year-old girl who’s very im-pulsive and strong-willed andguilt-wracked and articulate butnot effective – that seems reallyinteresting to me. And then ifI hear myself using those adjec-tives I think: “Oh, I could de-scribe myself that way,” exceptI’m not a 17-year-old girl. n I thought the “triangular”

way you shot the dialogue wasvery interesting.

In the film there’s continuallythe idea that other people are liv-ing their lives while [Margaret’s]going through her [troubledtimes], including the younglawyer. He’s not callous or cold,he’s just not that upset about it.Some people didn’t like the caféscene because there’s so much le-gal jargon, but I didn’t think itwas about the legal jargon.I thought it was about the fact thatthe Jeannie Berlin character is

suffering a real terrible loss thatshe is in anguish about, the AnnaPaquin character is half enjoyingherself, being a grown-up, smok-ing a cigarette, talking to thegrown-ups about the law and feel-ing guiltier and guiltier as it goeson, and then there’s the other fel-low; he’s trying to help out, buthe’s equally interested in the factthat the waiter didn’t bring himthe salt. And that’s just life. n That people in such close

proximity to each other are go-

ing through such different ex-periences?

When you run into someoneyou know on the streets of NewYork at first you think it’s such anincredible coincidence. But thenyou realize you only frequent twoor three neighborhoods, the sameones your friends do, so it’s notsuch a coincidence. But if you gobeyond those neighborhoods or ifsomething heightens your aware-ness, something like a death, yousuddenly realize that you’re sitting

there and that within 15 minutes’walk there’s 20 thousand peoplein their apartments and some ofthem are having fun and doingfrivolous things and some of themare having much worse problemsthan you are. And I think one ofthe things the movie is about is thedisconnectedness of that and alsothe interconnectedness of that. n The film went through sev-

eral mutations. Now there’sa theatrical release and an ex-tended cut coming out too.

There were hundreds of ver-sions! Honestly I didn’t know ifthe film was going to have anylife at all but now it has a life soI can’t complain. I’m verypleased with the film that was re-leased. That’s my movie. But be-cause of the nature of the film, itwas nice to make a version withno restrictions of any kind. Not somuch a preference but an oppor-tunity to do it another way. n Some people say that it’s

distracting to have big stars insmall roles. Why did you choosepeople like Matthew Broderickand Matt Damon for smallparts?

The extended cut gives thosecharacters more screen time buteven without that I think it wasvery important for the film – togive other people as prominenta place as possible when [Mar-garet] runs into them so that it’snot all about her. So I think themovie doesn’t work at all if theother characters aren’t as strongas possible. And I can’t help it ifMatt Damon is a big movie star.His character is his character.I was glad to have him in themovie. He’s a wonderful actor.I think with most movies now, theside characters tend to be thereonly to serve the main character.And in older films that’s not thecase. I like to take care that everypart is a part that somebodywould like to act.n You’ve said that Matthew

Broderick is your best friend.What drives the friendship?

I think we see the world froma similar point of view, althoughwe have very different tempera-ments. He’s a bit more anxiousthan I am. I’m a bit more on thedepressive side. But we both liketo make mean jokes about people.He has a very good sense of hu-mor. I hope I do too. When wefirst met in high school I felt thathe was exactly like me. So maybeit’s pure narcissism. n

Margaret director Kenneth Lonergan at the Pupp.

Ph

oto

: Jan

Han

dre

jch

I’m like the girl in the filmKenneth Lonergan on the ‘disconnectedness and interconnectedness’ of life in NYC

Legend has it that a hot spring was discovered inKarlovy Vary in the 14th century when one of CharlesIV’s hunting dogs raced into it in pursuit of a deer.The canny monarch saw the therapeutic potential ofthe hot water and used it to treat his troublesome leg,to good effect. Since that time 79 springs have beendiscovered in Karlovy Vary and 13 of them, of vari-ous chemical compositions, are used in traditional“drinking cures” that have become somewhat of a rit-ual in the town. These cures claim to treat ailmentsranging from diabetes to obesity to gout. Before se-lecting a specific treatment plan it is advisable toconsult a physician, which can be arranged by anyone of the many sanatoria and spa hotels that are list-ed at www.karlovyvary.cz. Any cure is likely to in-volve drinking the water from a certain spring whiletaking gentle walks in the town. You may see peoplewalking around sipping from ceramic “beakers”,which help to limit contact of the potentially corro-sive mineral-rich water with the teeth. Visitors arefree to sample the healing waters even without a con-sultation. If you fancy a casual approach, head to theSoviet-era Thermal Spring Colonnade (pictured)

where five outlets serve up water from the ThermalSpring at various temperatures. This spring puts onquite a show – spurting a column of water to a heightof up to 12 meters. Cures may also include bathingin the spring water, which is pumped directly intoseveral spa hotels, where no-nonsense therapists willdirect you into your prescribed bath and fetch youout after the allotted time is up. Expect to feel invig-orated rather than pampered! The KV spa experienceis not one of fluffy towels and candlelight. (GP)

EXPLAINERSEE YOU THERE

Taking the waters in Karlovy Vary

I’d like to see Polski film. I’ve just seen the poster andit’s a little bit shocking for me with the four guys andone of them is naked! It seems to be some sort of dramaabout them making a film. Filmmaking is a process and,as a filmmaker myself, it will be good to see as an out-sider how these people go about making a film. [Withthis poster] I now have some expectations and some pre-conceptions! I would like to catch Oh Boy as well.I don’t know much about it, but I want to see what sortof reflections it makes. I hope I’ll enjoy the films I see.I don’t actually think there is any good or bad in film orin any art. I look to see if it’s peculiar or not.

Polski film screens today at 8pm in the Thermal’sGrand Hall and tomorrow at 10:30am in the Pupp Cin-ema. Oh Boy screens today at 7pm in the Espace Dor-leans Cinema.

You can see Subrata Acharya’s Spring in the Air to-morrow at 7pm in the Thermal’s Congress Hall and onJuly 7 at 7pm in the Drahomíra Cinema. (COC) Photo: KVIFF

As hot young filmmakers ad-vance their careers, factoring inthe time span actually required tomake a second feature, shop itaround the festivals, go overscripts for a possible third, learnabout distribution deals, salesagents, TV rights and territo-ries...it seems you often end upwith pre-middle-age formerauteurs who are now pitchingprojects about life in the suburbs,battling angst, child-rearing re-sponsibilities and expandingwaistlines.

Many critics have grumbledabout this phenomenon dilutingthe work of ex-vanguards of theRomanian New Wave, to takejust one example. Film writers,however, remain fresh and edgypretty much forever.

So when cohorts of Czechscribe Vojtěch Rynda noticedhe hadn’t been at many filmcocktails of late, all became clearwhen he was spotted pushinga stroller around the Thermalwith lovely child, Anička, forcompany. Big changes lately?“Six times a day,” the wearyRynda told the Lowdown.

Elsewhere, the Docu Talentsfrom the East turned up a robustcrop of nine pending CEE proj-ects on Tuesday. Only one fo-cused on the issue of raisingkids, and that was from the POVof the Lithuanian “Father of theMafia,” now 71 and reflectingon a fine former career as an air-line hijacker and embezzler ofmillions of rubles.

Now that’s family-oriented en-tertainment we can live with! n

THE LOWDOWN

NOTICEPlease note the new times for

the following press screeningstoday: Dear Betrayed Friends(5:30pm, Cinema A − Ther-mal), Beasts of the SouthernWild (12:30pm, Cinema B −Thermal). Tonight’s midnightscreening of Iron Sky at the ČasCinema is the original version(English, German) with Czechsubtitles. English subtitles arenot included. n

Photo: KVIFF

STRANA / PAGE 2 WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2012

FESTIVAL DAILYTHE OFFICIAL ENGLISH DAILY OF THE 47TH KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

denicek@kviff.com

SCREENING FRIDAY JULY 6TH15.30H - CINEMA B - PREMIERE

A portrait by Lluís Miñarro

à propos de Manoel de Oliveira

101DIRECCIÓN LLUÍS MIÑARRO

PRODUCCIÓN MONTSE PEDRÓS

MONTAJE SERGI DIES

MEZCLAS SONOBLOK

DISEÑO GRÁFICO DANI SANCHIS

REALIZADO CON EXTRACTOS DEL FILM“EL EXTRAÑO CASO DE ANGÉLICA”

www.eddiesaeta.com/101

Jacob DammasCo-director, Polish Illusions, Denmark

n Why have you come to Karlovy Vary?To treat my stiff neck and sore back after

editing a certain film!n Is it your first time at the festival?First time at the festival, yes; Czech Re-

public, no. My first film Kredens screened atthe Jihlava documentary festival some yearsago, and Polish Illusions is developed withEx Oriente Film, so I and co-director HelgeRenner got to know a bit of the Czech Re-public and its people.nAre there any films by other filmmak-

ers that you would like to see?It is our European Premiere and Karlovy

Vary is an A-class festival, so it’s a doublehonor for us to be here. I just received the fes-tival bag − at first I thought the festival wasgiving away MacBook Pros because of theweight! − so I will have to study the programfirst and make a viewing strategy for the manygreat movies that I am sure are here.n Why should people see your film?It’s a peculiar film in many senses because

of its fantastic combination of characters (anAmerican pilot, an aging magician, anda young local admirer of the US, all living atthe charming Polish seaside) and because ofthe film’s style – balancing bitter-sweet docu-mentary, a fiction-like narrative in photogra-phy and editing, and a warmly ironic narratorcommenting in a fairytale-like way. (GP)

WHAT AM IDOING HERE?

Look out for the arrival of LuisMiñarro today, one of the mosthighly regarded producers of inde-pendent European film, alreadywell known to KVIFF fans for his2010 winner The Mosquito Net.He’s here to compete in the Offi-cial Selection alongside directorand co-writer Pere Vilà i Barcelóand lead Lou Castel with La lap-idation de Saint Etienne. This filmevokes the conflicts of intellectand corporality, the fragile defens-es of a private world against be-reavement and old age. They’rejoined by Greek writer/directorEktoras Lygizos, whose featuredebut Boy Eating the Bird’s Food

is generating a lot of interest. It’salso the first feature for young leadYannis Papadopoulos, who playsa boy calmly walking along theedge of catastrophe, without em-ployment, food, or money.

Director and co-writer SáraCserhalmi arrives today with herfather György Cserhalmi, whomshe cast in the lead role of her Eastof the West competition entryDear Betrayed Friends. This ex-ploration of state power, betrayaland the limits of friendship hasresonance far beyond its setting inpost-Soviet Hungary. Competingin this section with his debut fea-ture is Aik Karapetian, who both

wrote and directed the bleak Lat-vian coming of age drama PeopleOut There. Another strong com-petitor, Roger Gómez, one half ofthe writing/directing duo behindThe Little Team, arrives today forthe documentary selection.

And last but not least, MiroslavMomčilović arrives to show histhird feature Death of a Man inBalkans, which he wrote, directedand produced. This acerbic cham-ber piece follows the action ina composer’s apartment after hissuicide using only the webcam onhis computer, and was shot ina single take. A daring concept,well executed. (PLC)

FACES

Luis Miñarro Pere Vilà i Barceló Ektoras Lygizos Sára Cserhalmi Aik Karapetian Miroslav Momčilović

Although Karlovy Vary’s sizable Russian population means that you’re likely to encounter quite a fewsigns in Cyrillic, there are still plenty of Czech notices you should be paying attention to. Here’s a fewthat you’re bound to encounter on your KVIFF travels.

Od sebe/K sobě (od se-beh/kuh so-byeh) − Push/PullTam/Sem (tahm/sem) − Push/PullWC (vay-tsay) − ToiletsDámy/ Páni (dahmee/pahnee) − Ladies/GentsVchod/Východ (vkhod/veekhod) − Entrance/ExitNouzový východ (nose-o-vee veekhod) − Emergency ExitVstup zakázán (fstoop za-kah-zan) − No AdmissionZákaz kouření (za-kahz korshenee) − No SmokingNedotýkat se (neh-doe-teekat se) − Do Not TouchZákaz volného pobíhání psů (za-kahz volnay-hoe po-bee-hanney pisoo) − Keep Dogs On A LeadZákaz vstupu se psy (za-kahz fstoopoo se pisee) − No Dogs AllowedNevstupujte na trávník (neh-vistoopoo-yetay na trahv-neek) − Keep Off The GrassZákaz prodeje alkoholu mladistvým (za-kahz proday-eh alkoholoo mladeestveem) − Sales Of Alcohol ToUnder-18s Prohibited Vstup pouze s platnou jízdenkou (fstoop poezeh suh platnoe yeez-denko) − Entry With A Valid Ticket OnlyZákaz fotografování (s bleskem) (za-kahz foto-graf-ovanee sbleskem) − No (Flash) PhotographyVypněte si mobilní telefon (vipnyehteh see mobilnee tele-fon) − Please Switch Off Mobile PhonesVoda není pitná (voda ninnie peetnah) − Non-Potable WaterPOZOR (poe-zor) − Caution (Watch out!) (COC/PH)

Czech, please!

Works in Progress get a boostWill Tizard

An event called the Works in Progresssessions may not be as high-profile asKVIFF’s Crystal Globe competition, butthis year it brought international film de-velopment expertise to the makers of 18films from around the region who arehoping to complete them soon and getthem to audiences. The winner, an-nounced Tuesday, The Eternal Returnof Antonis P by Elina Psykou, will thisyear get a useful new benefit: 10,000 eu-ros in services from sponsor BarrandovStudios.

Director-producer teams presented ex-cerpts or trailers from what they’ve shotso far and pitched the projects to a three-person jury headed by Amy Dotson,a veteran producer and curator from thenonprofit US indie film networkwww.ifp.org.

Dotson, who has heard hundreds ofpitches from hopeful US filmmakers,found the perspective of European coun-terparts fascinating because, for onething, “people were saying their film wasa doctor when actually it was a lawyer.”

It’s no secret that creating a film, aswith any major art work, has much incommon with raising a child - and theseven-months-pregnant Dotson cautionsthat it’s very common for a director tobelieve they have the kind of offspringthey always wanted and intended tohave, despite the film having gone in itsown direction.

One reason such pitching practicewith professionals is important, sheadds, is that it can help them to see thattheir baby is now a different being com-pletely than what they think it is. It’sabout “what I was seeing versus whatI was reading,” as she puts it.

“I think that they were limiting them-

selves. They thought it was one thing butthey weren’t talking about the universal-ity – the things that would help it spreadits wings. There are a lot of projects herethat I really think, with smart strategy,and smart infrastructure from the pro-ducing team or their sales agent, cankind of go beyond the borders of theirterritory.”

As someone who works with 17 dif-ferent organizations around the worldand sees films from just as wide a spec-trum, says Dotson, “I was very struckthat a lot of these could carry – which isa real testament to the teams that putsthese projects together.”

Dotson − who judged the presenta-tions along with Czech indie distributorand arthouse cinema mogul Ivo Andrle,and Silje Nikoline Glimsdal, Eastern Eu-rope sales manager for Denmark-basedTrustNordisk − said the experience wasenlightening.

One refreshing discovery, she said,was that many Central and Eastern Eu-ropean filmmakers are shooting filmsthat go well beyond the “buckets” −common tropes about dealing with life’spain and misery (“the girlfriend hasdied...my mother is now mourning theloss of my little brother, how do I everrecover?”).

Instead, this collection ranges froma Polish story (Aftermath by WladyslawPasikowski) of two brothers who dis-cover a dark WWII secret from theirfamily’s past, to a Slovak account ofneo-Nazis (My Dog Killer by Mira For-nay) living in the hinterlands in desper-ate need of the kind of tenderness onlya canine can offer.

Meanwhile, Romania’s entry (OmegaRose by George Dorobantu) offers upa sci-fi post-apocalypse road movie anda Russian-Estonian film (The Term byPavel Kostomarov and Alexandr Ras-torguev) takes on the surreal world ofVladimir Putin’s political machine andthe risk it poses to those who dare to op-pose it.

And, says Dotson, “In terms of style,there were quite a few unique projects –meaning unique to the marketplace butalso creatively unique.”

The chance to give feedback to filmsstill developing is something Americanfilmmakers lack, she adds. “In the USwe don’t do works-in-progress screen-ings. You only get one shot.”

Perhaps because of that, US indiemakers have to learn the art of seduction– that’s something Dotson says some Eu-ropeans are still struggling with. Manyreveal too much about their films, leavingno mystery. “What we always say is,‘You want to show a little leg, not throwyour skirt up over your head. Young film-makers – first and second-time directors– they show their wares too quickly.”

Because the tide of films trying towash into the US market is so huge, Dot-son says, when a potential buyer sees theentire work, they tend to be dismissive.The trick, she says, “is making sure thisfilmmaker gets noticed.” That, and anactive web presence, a buzz at festivals,and all the other creative impetus it takesis what makes the difference. n

Director Elina Psykou and producer Giorgos Karnavas take the Worksin Progress prize with The Eternal Return of Antonis P.

Ph

oto

: M

ilan

Malíček

STRANA / PAGE 3WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2012

FESTIVAL DAILYTHE OFFICIAL ENGLISH DAILY OF THE 47TH KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

denicek@kviff.com

TOMORROW SCREENINGS:

5.7.2012 8:30 Cinema A Press & Industry

5.7.2012 9:00 Cinema C Press & Industry

5.7.2012 17:00 Grand Hall Premiere

Four SunsDirector: Bohdan SlámaCzech Republic, 2012, 105 minJuly 4, 1:30pm, Lázně III Cinema

Bohdan Sláma is among the few Czech directors whose work is regularlyshown abroad. Films such as Something Like Happiness and The CountryTeacher all went into international distribution, and there is a good chancethat his latest dramedy Four Suns will be shown internationally as well.

Again Sláma addresses the problems among the generations in modern society – torn between conformityand rebellion. Serious questions are posed, but the director/writer never loses his sense for comical situations.

The WallDirector: Julian Roman PölslerAustria, Germany, 2012, 108 minJuly 4, 4:30pm, Lázně III Cinema

Whenever a German-language production is about to fill the leading fe-male part, Martina Gedeck seems to be among the desired candidates.After casting the lead for The Wall, Austrian director Julian Pölsler knewthat he had to do his film with the heroine of the Oscar-winning drama

The Life of Others. And, in fact, Gedeck's performance of a female Robinson Crusoe in the Alps is phenom-enal. Portraying an unnamed woman, who is trapped alone by an invisible wall, she excels in a Kafkaesquedrama about solitude, sanity, and mankind’s relationship with time, nature, and the universe.

CosmopolisDirector: David CronenbergFrance, Canada, Portugal, Italy, 2012, 108 minJuly 4, 9:30pm, Small Hall − Thermal

Robert Pattinson is known to the world as a slick vampire in the Twilightseries, but in David Cronenberg’s latest film he turns into a young WallStreet billionaire. Don DeLillo’s 2003 novel Cosmopolis presaged theOccupy movement. Cronenberg picks up the baton in his film, showing

Pattinson as the archon of a stretch limo, where everything is taking place with alternating visitors: strategydiscussions, prostate examinations, and sex. In the end, the mob of the 99 percent attacks the rich – who arealso the ones in the limo.

Dark HorseDirector: Todd SolondzUSA, 2011, 85 minJuly 4, 2pm, Grand Hall − Thermal

In his work, Todd Solondz oscillates between tragedy and pitch-black hu-mor, and this irritating combination made him susceptible to accusationsthat he is taking advantage of his ill-fated maverick characters and mockingthem. However, Solondz shows more compassion in his latest movie Dark

Horse. Once again proving to be a relentless observer of America’s suburban middle class, his protagonist,Abe, is not only portrayed as the loser he definitely is. Rather, the audience begins to identify with a guy whois a portly college dropout living with his parents at 35 years of age. Nonetheless, as the film evolves, you learnabout the reasons for this, and cannot but feel close to a guy for whom nothing was ever meant to go right. n

Paul KatzenbergerFilm journalist, Süddeutsche.de, Süddeutsche Zeitung

REVIEWERS RECOMMEND

The Last Step – a chance to wear the trousers

Zbyněk Vlasák

The Festival Daily talked toIranian multi-tasker Ali Mosaffa– director, producer, screenplaywriter and actor all rolled intoone – about his Official Selec-tion competition entry, whichfeatures an actress trying tocome to terms with the recentdeath of her husband.

n Why did you choose theconcept of a “film withina film” for The Last Step?

For me the most enchantingthing about making films andwhatever happens behind thescenes is the absurdity of thewhole process, the comic situa-tions where a group of overgrownchildren try to justify their inabil-ity to accept the world of adults,and perhaps that is what makes itone of the most honest profes-sions in the world. So I was al-ways interested in implementingthis interpretation in a film but thetruth is that it is not a “film withina film” concept in the sense thatmakes us believe whatever hap-pened was part of the film whichwas being shot, but instead it ispart of the female character’s life,an actress whose job is engagingand consuming and, of course,absurd.n You are also an actor in

The Last Step. How did that in-fluence your film? And how didthe fact that you are married tothe lead actress influence it?

In most cases it made things

easier; I didn’t have to convincesomeone else to do what I wantedhim to but, at the same time, I hadno chance to relax behind thecamera and think everything overwith plenty of time and options.I had to get into the film and bepart of the story and then consec-utively I had to get detached andmake my judgments and thisadded to the fact that I was alsothe producer of the film some-times really confused me. Beingthe husband of my partner in thefilm was nothing new and in factwe are well used to it after mak-ing several films together, butI cannot deny things were moreadventurous before we were mar-ried.n Did directing your own

wife pose any major difficultiesfor you? It’s a rather unusualsituation...

It really is, especially when

you are used to being directed byyour wife in every other detail ofyour life. It is, in fact, a once-in-a-decade opportunity to haveyour say and finally wear thetrousers.n For you, is acting just a job

or do you see something magi-cal in it?

I could never regard it as a jobfor myself because I’m not a pro-fessional actor in the sense thatmost of my colleagues are, andI do not have the flexibility re-quired to portray a variety ofcharacters. So I have to rely onmy own characteristics and at thesame time hope for something tohappen, like the magic you men-tioned.

The Last Step screens today at5pm in the Thermal’s GrandHall and tomorrow at 1pm in theEspace Dorleans Cinema. n

The Last Step proffers a tale of loss and bereavement.

Photo: KVIFF

Mystery and intrigue surroundPolski filmWill Tizard

Probably more mystery and in-trigue have surrounded OfficialSelection entry Polski film byMarek Najbrt than any other re-cent contender. Much of that is bydesign, it seems, since the makershave done as little as possible ofthe usual film promotion activities– at least in the usual way.

They’d prefer that people whoare asking for a simple synopsis orthe answer to the eternal question,“What’s the film about?” continuescratching their heads for a time.Sure, glimpses of scenes haveemerged on YouTube and on – ap-propriately enough – Polish filmwebsites.

These really only tend to add tothe mystery, however, as we seethe characters, four Czech friendswho decide to make a film aboutthemselves, reading an apparentlyreal article in the Czech daily pa-per Mladá fronta Dnes aboutthemselves making the film.

They then appear on the terraceof the Thermal during the real-lifeKVIFF, with fake posters for theirfilm slipped in among the realones covering the hotel’s glasswalls (or, at least, with Polski filmposters promoting a film still be-ing shot slipped in among thosefor films actually screening).

We see cast member and rockerJan Budař hanging out with JohnMalkovich at last year’s festival,then see the other characters, whoplay versions of themselves (sortof), Pavel Liška, Tomáš Matono-

ha, Josef Polášek and MarekDaniel, promenading throughtown, grabbing girls’ breasts.Falling off a boat. Wanderingnaked through the night. Doingpress for Polski film. Arguingabout what the hell the film’s sup-posed to be about.

What gives here?At least one source, Prague art-

house cinema group and distribu-tor Aerofilms, is willing to venturean attempt at summing up, if notwhat Polski film is about, exactly,then why it’s expected to engageaudiences.

“Polski film is not going to bean easy piece for everyone,” saysAerofilms acquisitions director,Ivo Andrle, “but we do believethat our audiences will be able togive it extra attention and enjoythe playful destruction of a filmstructure and storytelling.”

Indeed, Najbrt, who came to

prominence with Protektor in2010, has dramatically departedfrom the carefully structured andplotted approach of that doomedWWII love story – and so have hisco-writers Robert Geisler andBenjamin Tuček. (Though, ironi-cally, it was Protektor’s big win atthe 2011 Off Plus Camera festivalin Krakow that provided much ofthe impetus for Polski film sincethe resulting substantial cash prizerequired him to make his next filmin partnership with Poland).

“Since this is quite a specialfilm,” Andrle explains, “we decid-ed to just show it to the people atthe festival and release it nation-wide right after. We are not ex-plaining anything.”

Polski film screens today at8pm in the Thermal’s GrandHall and tomorrow at 10:30amin the Pupp Cinema. n

OFFICIAL SELECTIONOFFICIAL SELECTION

Polski film has kept audiences and critics guessing.

Photo: KVIFF

STRANA / PAGE 4 WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2012

FESTIVAL DAILYTHE OFFICIAL ENGLISH DAILY OF THE 47TH KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

denicek@kviff.com

Sushi SakuraZeyerova 1☎ 777 912 311www.sushisakura.czOpen Mon-Fri 11am-10pm, Sat-Sun 12 noon-10pm

Sushi Sakura has moved aroundthe corner since this time last year.The great thing about the new lo-cation is that there’s plenty ofspace to sit outside if you don’tmind the boisterousness of thisbusy corner of KV, but there’s al-so the option of sitting inside incool and serene surroundings ifyou need a break from the hustleand bustle. The restaurant hasgreat lunch deals on weekdaysfrom 11am to 3pm. Various sushisets are accompanied by a com-plementary bowl of miso tofusoup (or a different soup of yourchoice if miso is not your thing).We tried the Happy Sakura Set(No. 318) for 240 CZK. The spicychicken soup was good andhearty, and the selection of fresh

salmon and tuna sushi perfectlypalatable. Apart from sushi thereis a special Fresh Summer Selec-tion menu with a good grilledsalmon salad for 145 CZK. Washit down with a small Pilsner for 35CZK. (GP)

Chebský DvůrTržiště 39 ☎ 353 229 332Open 10:30am-10pm

With an impressive collectionof beer mugs hanging from theceiling, Chebský Dvůr has a veryolde-Czech feel to it. The food onoffer is also very traditional. Youcan get some typical goulash for145 CZK, which is quite reason-able by KV standards. For thesame price, you can also samplethe local staple, svíčková, whichconsists of some thin strips ofbeef in a creamy sweet-and-soursauce topped with cranberry goo.These saucy dishes are best ac-companied by dumplings or potato

cakes (30 CZK) for soakage pur-poses. Thirsty beer lovers will en-joy a well-kept Gambrinus beerfor 60 CZK. There’s some

pleasant, sheltered outdoor seat-ing, which makes it a good placefor dining al fresco in KVs oftenwarm but wet conditions. Ham

and eggs (known as hemenex inthis part of the world) for just 80CZK is also a good bargain-breakfast option. (COC)

Another unmissable KVIFFTalk is scheduled for today.There’s a discussion withÁgnes Kocsis and Tizza Coviat 11am in the JamesonLounge, moderated by TomášBaldýnský. These two respecteddirectors and jurists will discusstheir award-winning films, theirproduction methods, and the po-sition of women directors today.

Later on it’s Karlovy VaryCouncil’s festival night, start-ing at 8:30pm at the OutdoorCinema. For 50 CZK you canwitness Nosferatu – TwilightSymphony, a multi-genre con-cert combining a screening ofthe classic silent horror flickwith live accompaniment by theKV Symphony Orchestra, play-ing well-known composer KarelŠimandl’s A Symphony of Hor-ror, which was written speciallyfor the occasion. With up-and-coming young conductor JanKučera wielding the baton, ex-pect the best. (PLC)

ON THE TOWN

DAILIES

KVIFF wouldn’t be KVIFF without a torrential downpour.

Photo: Milan Malíček

Open-air dramatics at the Colonnade.

Photo: Milan Malíček

Dark Horse director Todd Solondz rides into town

Photo: Milan Malíček

Sushi Sakura – an old KVIFF favorite finds a new home.Photo: KVIFF

Peter Le Couteur

“The best years of my life,”says Jean-Pierre Melville at thestart of the documentary CodeName Melville, “are the years ofthe war. I can’t help it.” He sup-ports this contentious statement,unacceptable to the journalist in-terviewing him, by saying that itwas during the war he met bravemen, willing to die for what theybelieved. To him, he explains,courage is virtue.

During the last years of WWII,Melville worked for the FrenchResistance, but even before heenlisted in the army at 19 yearsof age he was gaining firsthandexperience of the underworlds somemorably immortalized in hisfilm noir masterpieces. He fre-quented bars with gangsters, hislawyer was a gangster lawyer hemet hanging out with the toughsat the Saint-Lazare railway sta-tion in his native Paris. ThoughMelville’s films are undeniably

stylized, they have the extraordi-narily rare property of being styl-ized direct from reality, as well asfrom American film and pulpnovels like the Fantômas seriesof Marcel Allain and Pierre Sou-vestre. His gangsters all retain thesignatures of the Interbellum pe-riod, a Parisian noir that was nev-er contemporary, but occupies analternate reality where the 1930s,with its Burberry-donning donsand sleuths, never ended.

Through his heavily stylizedand stereotyped pulp dreams,Melville explored the bizarre factthat, as he said, “As I grow old,I realize that the 1940-44 era,which should have left us badmemories, is something wedream of almost with nostalgia.”This astounding insight is rele-vant even today, as the thousandsof books and films still producedabout this era attest. War nostal-gia is as real as the undeniable ap-peal of gangster movies, detectivenovels, and (currently) forensic

dramas like C.S.I. Whether we aredrawn to the darkness as Freudi-ans would have us believe, orrather are drawn to a world wherethe intricacies of existential con-flict are resolved by men with re-volvers, the fact remains that weare still drawn there. As DavidČeněk says in his excellent cata-logue introduction to the tributesection, one of Melville’s prerog-atives, “...was to blend the Amer-ican Dream with ancient mythol-ogy at the archetypal level...”

The world of war, especiallythat of military officers, was toMelville equal in virtue to themonastic life, and his filmmakingreflects his vision of the para-doxically ascetic and esthetic ex-istence of the soldier. He portraysthe man in uniform, whether thehat and long coat of the gangsterin Le deuxième souffle, precise-ly the same outfit for a memberof the Resistance in Army ofShadows, the habit of the priestin Léon Morin, Priest, or the

garb of an officer in The Silenceof the Sea. His own mission tomake films was likewise an exer-cise in renunciation, an absolutededication of his life to cinema,perhaps one reason for his ownaffectation of a uniform in theever-present hat, dark glasses,and raincoat. Jean-PierreMelville was no stranger to lifeunder a mask, and his imper-turbable straight face and half-lidded gaze recalls that other con-temporaneous giant of genre,Alfred Hitchcock. Melville wasborn Jean-Pierre Grumbach, anAlsatian Jew, only to becomeJean-Pierre Cartier by necessityduring the years of Nazi occupa-tion, changing his alias to“Nano” (his childhood nick-name), before finally taking onthe name of Melville specificallyas an homage to the author ofMoby Dick.

Melville was hailed by the ris-ing New Wave of French film-makers as an antecedent, even an

inspiration. He specificallyavoided any connections with in-tellectualism, favoring a moreAmerican style as did the NewWave movement as a whole, butin his later films, unlike the spon-taneous, naturalistic techniquesof the New Wave, Melville keptstrict, almost obsessive controlover color and lighting. He is per-haps the most significant fore-runner of the fusion of a black-and-white noir style with the useof heavily restricted color, whichcan be seen today in the work ofDavid Lynch and his imitators,monochrome dystopias likeCypher and Gattaca, and is ar-guably even an influence on thegraphic-novel style of Sin City.The Lynchian link is particularlystrong both in Melville’s use ofisolated, unexplained locationsmore suitable to the topographyof a dream than simple geogra-phy, and to his use of a heavilypresent, almost physically palpa-ble darkness.

If you only catch one film fromthe Melville retrospective, makeit The Red Circle from 1970.This existential jewel heist isMelville at the height of his genrework. It has the tight control ofcolor through the film’s process-ing and through the sets, cos-tumes and makeup: watch out forthe perfectly employed touchesof red, blue, and green. It has thehermetic solitude of the outlawand the sleuth in their matchingfedoras and Burberrys, navigat-ing the archetypical plot with thebare minimum of dialogue. It hasthe slyly subjectivist, manneristcamera work. It has the Melvil-lian metafictional touches andartful timelessness. But most ofall, it’s a gripping thriller, tickingall the boxes and striding along ata mounting pace. Melville isa master craftsman, and we’revery lucky indeed to havea chance to see this body of im-peccable classics on the silverscreen. n

JP Melville, a master of noir in color

Le deuxième souffle has plenty of long-coated gangsters.

Photo: KVIFF

Portraying the French Resistance as an Army of Shadows.

Photo: KVIFF

Existential jewel heist The Red Circle.

Photo: KVIFF