Berlin International Film Festival | 14 February

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Daily: Day 6 - 14 February

Competition

Competition

Magnolia
by Paul Thomas Anderson

After tackling the porn industry in Boogie Nights, Paul Thomas Anderson embarks on his most ambitious venture yet, the 188-minute Magnolia. It's a sprawling, character-driven epic which might best be described as a tale of unhappy families.

Also in competition, Paradiso - Seven Day with Seven Women. Rudolf Thome, sexagenarian, who is represented in the Competition for the first time (he is a five-time Forum participant), has made a film that critic Norbert Grob has designated "the first important German film of the new millennium."


 

Focus

Three Cheers for Mr. Ripley

Leo may have left the building, but the stars were still out in force last night for Anthony Minghella's competition entry The Talented Mr Ripley.

J. Law, G Paltrow, M. Damon

Press conference

Streaming video
The Mr. Ripley cast face-to-face with the press: Matt Damon, Gwenyth Paltrow, Jude Law...

  Streaming video
Homage was paid to Gong Li, Berlinale jury president...

 

Today's Screenings


Competition

Magnolia Dir: Paul Thomas Anderson. Cast: Jason Robards, Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore. Cruise, a sex guru who conducts seminars for men who need lessons in how to 'seduce and destroy', is called back to his dying father's side. 189 mins.+ short Episodes In Disbelief 8 mins.

Paradiso ­ Sieben Tage mit sieben Frauen (Paradiso ­ Seven Days With Seven Women) (Germany) Dir: Rudolf Thome. Cast: Hanns Zischler, Cora Frost, Adriana Altaras. A composer invites the seven women in his life ­ lovers, wives and companions, to his 60th birthday celebration. 103 mins. + short Vizio

Retrospective

Der ideale Untermieter (Federal Republic Of Germany) (1956) Dir: Wolf Schmidt. 98 mins. + short Liebe 2002

Der achte Tag (1990) (Federal Republic Of Germany) Dir: Reinhard Münster. Cast: Katharina Thalbach, Hans-Christian Blech, Hannelore Elsner. 99 mins.

Species (US) (1995) Dir: Roger Donaldson. Cast: Ben Kinsley, Natasha Henstridge, Forest Whitaker. 108 mins.

Gattaca (US) (1997) Dir: Andrew Niccol. Cast: Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, Alan Arkin. A man rebels against a sterile world of genetically modified people. German/French subtitles. 112 mins.

The Boys From Brazil (US) (1978) Dir: Franklin J Schaffner. Cast: Gregory Peck, Laurence Olivier, James Mason. A Nazi in hiding has a sinister plot to reconquer the world using the DNA of Adolph Hitler.125 mins.

Homage: Jeanne Moreau

Une Histoire Immortelle (1967) Dir: Orson Welles. Cast: Orson Welles, Jeannne Moreau. A slow-moving piece which was the next-to-last film Welles completed as director. 60 mins.
+ short The Deep/Dead Reckoning/ Direction Towards Death. 20 mins.
20.00
La Mariée Etait En Noir (The Bride Wore Black) (France/Italy/UK) (1968) Dir: François Truffaut. Cast: Jeanne Moreau, Claude Rich, Jean-Claude Brialy. A bitter woman traces and kills the five men responsible for her husband's death. Eng. subtitles. 107 mins.

Homage: Robert De Niro

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (US) (1994) Dir: Kenneth Branagh. Cast: Robert De Niro, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hulce. De Niro stars as Frankenstein's monster. 123 mins.

Panorama1

Kennedy Et Moi (Kennedy And Me) (France) Dir: Sam Karmann. Cast: Jean-Pierre Bacri, Nicole Garcia, Sam Karmann. Depicts the dynamics of a family in which the father is undergoing a mid-life crisis. Eng. subtitles. 86 mins. + short 2 Divided by 3. 7 mins.

Yek Rouz Bishtar (One More Day) (Farsi) Dir: Babak Payami. Cast: Leila Sa'adi, Ali Hosseini. A man and a woman's daily meetings appear to be coincidental. Eng. subtitles. 75 mins. + short Monette. 9 mins.0

Peppermint (Greece) Dir: Costas Kapakas. A loving and playful reminiscence of a man's youth, triggered by his mother's funeral, where he meets his cousin again. 106 mins. + short G Dir: Rolf Gibbs. 5 mins.1

Rifleman Of The Voroshilov Regiment (Russia) Dir: Stanislav Govoruchin. Cast: Michail Uljanorv, Anna Sinjakina, Vladimir Semago. A retired soldier takes revenge on the men who raped his grand-daughter. Eng. subtitles. 100 mins. + short Pis' Mo V Ameriku Dir: Kira Muratova. 21 mins.

Chill Out (German) Dir: Andreas Struck. Cast: Sebastian Bloberg, Tatjana Blacher, Barnaby Metschurat. A twenty-something love triangle in Berlin 's hip district of Prenzlauer Berg. Eng. subtitles. 90 mins. + short Puta De Oros. 14 mins.

L'Ombra Del Gigante (The Shadow Of The Giant) (Italy) Dir: Roberto Petrocchi. Cast: Margherita Buy, Arnaud Arbessier, Marisa Solinas. A captain and his wife have been stationed in a fortress to guard a mysterious prisoner. No one knows how long the prisoner has been locked up, but he stirs the emotions of those who are forbidden to see his face. Eng. subtitles. 97 mins.

Drôle De Félix (Funny Felix) (France) Dir: Jacques Martineau & Olivier Ducastel. Cast: Sami Bouajila, Pierre-Loup Rajot, Ariane Ascaride. Felix decides to leave Dieppe to meet the father he has never known. French, Eng. subtitles. 97 mins. + short Mon Frere.12 mins.

Night Waltz ­ The Music Of Paul Bowles (US) Dir: Owsley Brown. With: Paul Bowles, Philip Ramey. Author and literary cult figure Bowles reveals a lesser-known side of his artistic spirit. English. 80 mins. + short Sparklehorse. 5 mins

Before Stonewall (US) (1984) Dir: Greta Schiller, Robert Rosenburg. 85 mins.

The Virgin Dir: Diego Donnhofer. Cast: Joey Kern, Kirsty Hinchcliffe, Glen Cruz. Follows three people on their drug-fuelled wanderings. 90 mins + short One Night. 12 mins

Segunda Piel (Second Skin) (Spain) Dir: Gerardo Vera. Cast: Javier Bardem, Jordi Molla, Ariadna Gil. A love triangle becomes deeply tangled. 106 mins.

Se Quien Eres ( I Know Who You Are) (Spanish) Dir: Patricia Fierreira. Cast: Miguel Angel Sola, Ana Fernandez, Roberto Enriquez. A neurologist tries to piece togther the past of her mysterious patient, but when his former bosses begin to doubt his amnesia, it puts him in danger, as he was involved with terrorist attacks. 100 mins.

Paragraph 175 Dir: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman. Relates the history of the German anti-homosexuality law, which was used to prosecute West German homosexuals until 1969. 81 mins.

Fremdgehen (Stepping Out) (German) Dir: Eva Heldmann. Eng. subtitles. Centres on a female protagonist who wanders the long corridors of a military barracks in search of sex and pleasure. 64 mins + short Subterranean (Homesick Blues) 10 mins.

Cremaster 2 Dir: Mathew Barney. The latest film from the sculptor-video artist is actually the fourth of a five-part series. 79 mins.

Forum

Tuvalu (Germany) Dir: Veit Helmer. Cast: Denis Lavant, Chulpan Hamatova. From the award-winning maker of short films, a bizarre poetic fairy tale about passionate love. 92 mins.

Guo Hai Suidao (Cross Harbour Tunnel) (Hong Kong) Dir: Lawrence Wong. Cast: Martin Kam, Anthony Teoh. Eng. subtitles. 93 mins.

Cheung Fo ­ The Mission (Hong Kong) Dir: Johnnie To. A failed assassination attempt on Triad boss Lung brings five killers of diverse backgrounds together. 81 mins.

Blumen lieben oben (Germany) Dir: Erwin Michelberger. 83 mins.

Une Journée D'Andréi Arsenewitch (France) Dir: Chris Marker. 55 mins. Buenos Aires Zero Degree (Hong Kong) Dir: Kwan Pun-Leung, Amos Lee. Eng. subtitles. 58 mins

Heimkehr der Jäger (Austria) Dir: Michael Kreihsl. Cast: Ulrich Tukur, Julia Filimonow. Franz copies master paintings. He is unbalanced by small events and, being a thin-skinned individual, is prone to knee-jerk behaviour. 90 mins.

Wüste (Germany) Dir: Ebbo Demant. A journey across three continents in search of the spiritual power of deserts in such places as Egypt, Jordan and the US.

Zoe (German) Dir: Maren-Kea Freese. 79 mins

Running Out Of Time (Hong Kong) Dir: Johnnie To. Cast: Andy Lau, Lau Ching-Wan. English subtitles. 92 mins.

Jiang Hu: Life On The Road (China) Dir: Wu Wenguang. A documentary film about a group of country dwellers who lead a sparse existence and are in constant danger. Eng. subtitles. 149 mins

Shiro (The White) (Japan) (1999) Dir: Katsuyuki Hirano. A man and his bicycle are ready to take an adventure 2, 328 kilometres long.118 mins

Pelon Maanitiede (Geography Of Fear) (Finland) Dir: Auli Mantila. Cast: Tanjalotta Raikka, Pertti Szeholm. Tum accidently kills two thugs. 95 mins.

Kinpatsu No Sogen (Across A Gold Prairie) (Japan) (1999) Dir: Isshin Inudo. Cast: Yusuke Iseya, Chizuru Ikewaki. An 80-year-old man has spent years confined to his house due to a heart condition. One morning he wakes up believing to himself to be 20 again. 96 mins.

Ein Mensch wie Dieter ­ Golzower (German) Dir: Barbara and Winfried Junge. The life story of Dieter, who joins the army and dreams of sailing the seven seas.122 mins.

Nabbie No Koi (Nabbie's Love) (Japan) Dir: Yuji Nakae. Cast: Naomi Nishida, Tomi Taira. A humourous and sometimes eerie tale from the island of Okinawa, with strong folklore and musical elements. Eng. subtitles. 92 mins.

Seitsemän Laulua Tundralta (Finland)
Dir: Markku Lehmuskallio, Anastasia Lapsui. The result of some long-term cinematic exploration of the lifestyle of North Siberian Eskimos. 85 mins.

Homesick (Japan) Dir: Mito Hineki. Cast: Okumura Kiminobu. Set in late autumn in Hokkaido, illustrating people's homesickness with black humour. 60 mins.
+ Rendez-Vous (Japan) Dir: Yamamoto Kosuke. Cast: Murakami Jun. 55 mins.

Strastnoj Bulwar (Passion Boulevard) (Russia) Dir: Vladimir Chotinenko. Cast: Sergej Koltakow, Nina Usatowa. A successful actor disguises himself as Pushkin and visits a succession of girlfriends and aquaintances who talk about their failures.108 mins.

New German Films

Die Braut (The Mask Of Desire) Dir: Egon Günther. Draws a picture of a famous German poet, as seen through his wife's eyes. Eng. subtitles. 112 mins.

Südsee, eigene Insel (Our Land In The South Pacific) Dir: Thomas Bahmann. When Albert's family holiday falls through he schemes to hide in the cellar to save face in front of the neighbours. Eng. subtitles. 92 mins.

Wege in die Nacht (Paths In The Night) Dir: Andreas Kleinert. After Walter loses his job, he spends his nights with two young people wandering the streets of Berlin. Eng. subtitles. 98 mins.

Late Show (Germany) Dir: Helmut Dietl. A broadcast controller is desperate for ratings and the money men are already considering giving him the push. Eng. subtitles. 107 mins.

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Big Cat, Little Cat! Animation. A likeable relationship between felines which encourages people to tell the truth. 64 mins.

Kruimeltje (Krümelchen) (Netherlands) Dir: Maria Peters. Eng. subtitles.119 mins.

Tri Brata (Netherlands) Dir: Serik Aprymov. Eng. subtitles. 119 mins. + short Pugalo. 15 mins.

Mr Rice's Secret Dir: Nicholas Kendall. A cancer-stricken boy overcomes his fears and makes a miraculous discovery which resurrects his will to live. 92 mins.

Sherdil (Sweden) Dir: Gita Mallik. Eng. subtitles. 97 mins.

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