Big is Good.

Jose here.



Money may not sleep but apparently our creativity does. Watching Wall Street the other day I couldn't help but ask myself how is it that technology took a turn on us at some point and now cell phones are going big again?

I know nothing will ever be as big as that brick Gordon Gekko checks out of jail in the sequel...



...but in theory the things we saw back in '87 are still going on today...sorta. It seems that for a while technology was driven towards making everything so tiny. Remember those cell phones that were supposed to be implanted in our molars? With the advent of the i Phone it seems that now all they want is to go back to a reasonable size that makes your hand feel like you are carrying something (have you noticed how hot those things can get sometimes?).

Can this be some sort of cautionary tale about how the excess of the 80's fooled the 90's into downsizing and then the 00's reminded us again about how weak we really are? OK someone stop me before I start sounding like Oliver Stone.

Speaking of which, have you seen it yet? Were you as baffled as I was? Are you more in love than ever with Carey Mulligan? Tell us!

Curio: Money Never Sleeps

Alexa here. When I first heard that Oliver Stone was making Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, I had about as much interest in seeing it as watching an episode of Two and a Half Men. Julien's review from Cannes has convinced me that I should trust my instincts. But if you can't wait for the return of Gordon Gekko, artist Cedric Mnich will happily print some Gekko currency for you.

Cedric, born in France and a former trader, creates art "inspired by the financial markets." He's done portraits of Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke and Bernie Madoff, but has a particular affinity for Gekko.

You can buy your own Gekko $20 bills at his store. Just remember, you can't use them to make a down payment on that home loan.

Cannes Madness

Whew.

Julien here, your special correspondent in Cannes.

Sorry to report only now, but my schedule has been pretty hectic. I managed to attend a few screenings, so let me share my impressions with you.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is even worse than I expected it to be. Oliver Stone's 1987 original was never a great film, but it's a fun time capsule, and it contains the signature performance of one of the biggest stars of the 80's. But this ill-advised, opportunistic sequel is just a mess. Stone clings to his reputation as a whistle-blowing, politically conscious filmmaker, but his depiction of Wall Street is so broad (even by his standards), with its machiavellian, cigar-smoking traders, that it ends up feeling as topical as a Hannibal Lecter picture. Not to mention that the abundance of financial blabber is not only unilluminating, but boring as hell. And as iconic as Gordon Gekko may be, he's a relic from another era, and Stone has clearly no idea what to do with him, and how to integrate him to the current financial situation. So we get less Michael Douglas and loads of Shia LaBeouf, who manages to be even more obnoxious than Charlie Sheen was in the original. As for the direction, Stone's flashy visual histrionics feel more hollow and explanatory than ever, and as if all that wasn't enough, the musical choices are simply atrocious.

Woody Allen's You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger is a huge improvement on last year's Whatever Works. Sadly, that's not saying much. It's an ensemble piece, revolving around two disintegrating marriages, (Naomi Watts and Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins and Gemma Jones). Fear of aging and dying, romantic longing, cruel disappointments: it's typical Woody Allen fare, but once again, something's missing. It's clear that of late, Woody doesn't seem half as concerned with his characters as he once was, and this one lacks the sharpness that made Match Point and Vicky Cristina Barcelona his best pictures of the decade. The actors are a mixed bag: Naomi Watts sells the romance better than the comedy, Anthony Hopkins seems bored (but when doesn't he these days), and Antonio Banderas is little more window dressing, but Josh Brolin's scruffy masculinity works better here than it does in Wall Street 2, and Gemma Jones is delightfully funny as Watts' gullible mother. However the main attraction remains wondering what Nicole Kidman would have made of the stereotypical Woody Allen hooker (played here amusingly by Lucy Punch).

Mike Leigh's Another Year is the best film I've seen so far during the festival, but I have to admit I don't quite share the critical community's unanimous praise. My problem lies with the structure: the film is centered around a couple (Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen), around which revolves an array of supporting characters. But it soon becomes clear that the most involving characters are not the leads, whose quiet life and happy marriage are deliberately devoid of any real drama. One of the couple's friend, Mary (beautifully played by the great Lesley Manville, pictured left with Leigh, who may win the Best Actress prize on Sunday) has almost become the protagonist by the end of the picture. I kept wondering why Mike Leigh hadn't built the whole film around her, and also why he abandoned the devastating character played by Imelda Staunton after only two short scenes. Maybe he intended to frustrate his audience, but why? Also, I have to say that I felt the opposition between blissful family life and pathetic spinsterhood felt a little -dare I say it - conventional. Don't misunderstand me, it's still strong cinema, and it has great moments, but I would hardly call it Leigh's best.

I'll be back to talk about Xavier Dolan's Les Amours Imaginaire, but for now I have to walk the red carpet with Javier Bardem.

Cheers.

Cannes Tweets & Treats: Bernal, Bingbing and Brolin

I woke up with a serious case of Cannes Envy this morning. There's no way around unwanted feelings so you plunge in them to get to the other side. That's the way to do it, right? Or that's the way Nathaniel (c'est moi) does it. Maybe that's the masochist's way? So herewith... random thoughts on Cannes photos, fashions, and tweets from people I was exceptionally jealous of all day. Cuz they're... you know... there. In the thick of it.

Please note: If y'all don't start commenting soon, we're likely to take a long summer hiatus and see you ungrateful beyootches in October when Oscar buzz heats up. Comments are like food. Feed the insatiable Film Experience Beast!

We begin with two questions starring Gael García Bernal.


1. Is he, like, inviting us to pose with him here? Won't he be crushed in the mass forward rush of crazed lustful exhibitionist fans?

2. Wouldn't he be super easy to lose at a black tie party?
He's so tiny.
You'd never find him again.

And now some funny or interesting movie tweeting...

on Mike Leigh's Another Year which is garnering awards buzz for both the film and Leigh regular Lesley Manville

@erickohn "Finally, a top-notch competition film. Mike Leigh's ANOTHER YEAR is a startlingly honest and understated character study."
@ebertchicago "Imbecilic Cannes question of the day (to Mike Leigh): "Why did you make Sally so sad?"
@totalfilm Mike Leigh's Another Year: kind of a greatest hits movie; pleasure to watch scene to scene if a little familiar.
@guylodge "Mike Leigh's "Another Year" is the best thing I've seen at Cannes so far: and Lesley Manville is stunning

on You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, Woody Allen's annual sweet and sour cinematic dish. Sweet and sour because well... you know. You never know if it's going to be a Vicky Cristina Barcelona or a Hollywood Ending.

@JustinCChang "Odd, really, to go straight from the bracing humanity of Mike Leigh to the cardboard inhumanity of Woody Allen"
@eug "Clearly they love Woody Allen in Cannes: Serious pushing, shoving & yelling at the entrance to screening now. Survived."
@jamesrocchi "Light, slight Woody Allen with an unexpectedly vicious streak hidden beneath the farce and ruptured romances."
@awardsdaily ""Cannes - funny rapport between Woody Allen and Josh Brolin at press conference. Woody killed, of course. CANNES Woody Allen press conference - Woody says of death, 'I do not recommend it.' And of aging, 'try to avoid it if possible.'"

Josh Brolin and Woody Allen meet the press

on Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, which also stars Josh Brolin. He busy busy... like 2007 busy again in 2010.

@onthecroisette Wall Street moved me immensely, despite it's happy-ending. Is there something wrong with me? That's what my friends say.THEY ARE WRONG!
@cobblehillis WALL STREET: THE QUICKENING (Stone): 2.5 hrs of bullet-point speeches about $$$. Mulligan cries, Langella hams, Sheen cameos, Shia lebeoufs.
@gemko Wall Street: Let Me Be Clear This Time, Greed Is In Fact Bad ('10 Stone): 43. Not a train wreck, sadly, just didactic-bombastic.

Best Dressed!
You have to have a huge international profile to win "Best Dressed" kudos in the media so Fan Bingbing (or Bingbing Fan, whichever you'd prefer) won't get enough credit for that deep groove she wore into the Cannes carpet.


ShareThe Chinese beauty was there to promote Chongqing Blues (previous credits include: Bodyguards and Assassins and The Matrimony) and she was working way more diverse looks in the first few days of Cannes than any of the high profile American stars or oft-photographed jury beauties Kate Beckinsale or Aishwarya Rai. Well done, Bingbing!
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The Cannes Lineup (Thus Far)

Updated 04/19 They've added two titles but none to the actual competition list just yet. Updates are included below

04/15 Yes, they will add a few titles. Looking round the web people expect something like 4 to 5 more films to show up. Speculation that Malick's Tree of Life or Nolans Inception or Schnabel's Miral probably won't die until after they add said missing titles. But if you're heading over to the South of France next month or merely reading along on various Twitter feeds or film blogs, these are some of the titles you'll be hearing about.

Blanchett. Crowe. Scott

Opening Night Film
Because you have to kick off with a starry entry for that maximum red carpet kick. It gets the international and mainstream press excited and you need their eyeballs... even if your festival is for the global cinephiles.

• Robin Hood (Ridley Scott)
  I'm amused that the tagline is marketing this as an "untold story". Hee. If you look up 'Robin Hood' at ye olde IMDb you get 22 "exact matches" and many more options as well. But it gives us a chance to see Cate Blanchett work the red carpet again and after that one year break (thanks Cate!) the carpet will welcome her back with... uh... open fibers.
  

Competition Titles
The Cannes selection committee is really stingy about this field, nearly always erring on the side of the establishment. You rarely see first time auteurs and they're even stingy about second time auteurs who made a big splash the previous year (See: Xavier Dolan in Un Certain Regard instead).

• Another Year (Mike Leigh)
  Only one more month until we know something (anything!) about Leigh's latest. Such as vague plot. Who has the lead role. Etcetera.
  
• Biutiful (Alejandro González Iñárritu)
  
  


• Burnt by the Sun 2 (Nikita Mikhalkov)
  Russia's sole competition entry is the longest competition film at 2 hours and 21 minutes. It's also one we have to watch for the Best Foreign Language Film at next year's Oscars since the original won the top prize.
• Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami)
• Fair Game (Doug Liman)
  This is the Valerie Plame story again, only with Naomi Watts and Sean Penn in the top roles. As Guy Lodge said on Twitter

  Doug Liman goes from "Jumper" to a Cannes competition slot. He's been reading Lee Daniels's self-improvement manual.

  
  
• The Housemaid (Im Sang-soo)
  This is where we're reminded that IMDb is sometimes months behind on movies. Must be a bear to keep that site fresh with a never-ending stream of thousands of movies in various stages of development. It's listed as in pre-production but next month it shows at Cannes! I'm looking forward to this one -- not that I'll ever get a chance to see it -- because it stars the lead actress of Secret Sunshine Do-Yeon Jeon.
  
• La Nostra Vita (Daniele Luchetti)
• Of Gods and Men (Xavier Beauvois)
• Outrage (Takeshi Kitano)
• Outside the Law (Rachid Bouchareb)
• Poetry (Lee Chang-dong)
• The Princess of Montpensier (Bertrand Tavernier)
• A Screaming Man (Mahamat-Saleh Haroun)

The great Mathieu Amalric (and cast) for Tournée

• Tournée (Mathieu Amalric)
• Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul)
  The sometimes confounding Thai director's latest has the longest title (love it) but is actually the shortest film in competition (90 minutes)
  
• You, My Joy (Sergei Loznitsa)

Un Certain Regard
This popular sidebar of films, a competition which runs parallel to the main field, is generally where they put younger still maturing talent and "original and different" films. Though a certain 101 year old Portuguese master is here, so...

• Adrienn Pál (Ágnes Kocsis)
• Angelica (Manoel de Oliveira)
  This 101 year-old's 49th project -- god he has more stamina than Clint Eastwood! -- also goes by the titles The Strange Case of Angelica or O Estranho Caso de Angélica
  
• Aurora (Cristi Puiu)
  From the director of the acclaimed Romanian film (is there any other kind?) The Death of Mr. Lazarescu. Like that film, this one is lengthy... the lengthiest from either lineup with a 179 minute running time.
  
• Blue Valentine (Derek Cianfrance -first feature!)
  I'm already eager to see his second (third?) feature I liked this one so much. Cannes lists this as a first feature -- meaning he's eligible for their directorial debut award (a very big deal) but according to the IMDb his feature debut came some 10 years back when he made Brother Tied. Maybe that one doesn't count for some reason. The IMDb can be a confusing place.
  
• Chatroom (Hideo Nakata)
• Chongqing Blues (Xiaoshuai Wang)
• The City Below (Christoph Hochhäusler)
• Hahaha (Hong Sang-soo)

Xavier Dolan (I Killed My Mother) returns to Cannes, the scene of his debut triumph

• Heartbeats (Xavier Dolan)
  This film from the writer/director/actor/gay wunderkind is also referred to as Les Amours Imaginaires which is a much more evocative title, don't you think? Click here for more info on the film
  
• Life Above All (Oliver Schmitz)
• The Lips (Iván Fund & Santiago Loza)
• Octubre (Daniel Vega -first feature!)
• R U There (David Verbeek)
• Rebecca H. (Return to the Dogs) (Lodge Kerrigan)
• Simon Werner Disappeared… (Fabrice Gobert -first feature!)
• Socialisme (Jean-Luc Godard)
• Tuesday, After Christmas (Radu Muntean)
• Udaan (Vikramaditya Motwane -first feature!)

Out of Competition
Who knows the politics behind the Out of Competition field each year. But this is where you'll find big name directors who can benefit from a Cannes premiere without the nerve wracking 'will it win anything?' drama.

Brolin. Stone. Douglas. LaBeouf. Mulligan

• Carlos (Olivier Assayas)
  One of France's most fascinating directors returns with this true story of the infamous criminal "Carlos the Jackal"
  
• Tamara Drewe (Stephen Frears)
  I liked Chéri more than most but I still think it was something like a textbook definition of Missed Opportunity in a few substantial ways. Will Frears regain his artistic footing? Can we get something on the level of his late 80s / early 90s work again any time soon? Please. Pretty please. This is based on a graphic novel and stars Gemma Arterton
  
• Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Oliver Stone)
  I can't decide whether this movie needed a sequel or not. One can make an argument either way. But the movie will answer the question as to whether or not it did. It's 136 minutes long which... well, I hope Stone has enough to say to keep that going.
  
• You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (Woody Allen)
  Just discussed here.
  

Special Screenings
"Special" Interpret that however you will.

• 5XFavela (Carlos Diegues)
• Abel (Diego Luna -first feature!)
  Both of the Y Tu Mama Tambien boys have moved into direction. I remember two teenagers talking about this one on the bus in Park City this past January (it played at Sundance). I can't for the life of me recall their conversation other than that they thought it was "weird"
  
• Chantrapas (Otar Iosseliani)
• Draquila: L'Italia Che Trema (Sabina Guzzanti)
  trailer here
  
• Inside Job (Charles Ferguson)
• Nostalgia For The Light (Patricio Guzmán)
• Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow (Sophie Fiennes)
  a documentary about an installation artist
  

Midnight Screenings

They'll have to add more of these. The festival lasts a fortnight!

Thomas Dekker (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) does
leading manboy duties for indie favorite Gregg Araki

• Blackhole (Gilles Marchand)
  This is also known as L'Autre Monde and stars Gallic hotties Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet (from the sticky Love Songs) and Melvill Poupaud (from the brilliant A Christmas Tale)
  
  the trailer for Blackhole. Me want
  
  
• Kaboom (Gregg Araki)
  Quiet Earth calls this an oversexed sci-fi romp. I can still remember vividly seeing The Living End (his debut) in the movie theater. I hadn't ever seen anything like it.
  

Don't you wish you were in France?

Other Blog Reactions to Check Out:
Thompson on Hollywood some chatter about the films that didn't make the cut or weren't finished in time
Women and Hollywood No female directors in competition
Independent Eye Light on American films
Indie Wire the lineup and poll. which film are you most excited for?
Guardian Cannes '09 will definitely be a tough act to follow
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