Film Festivals 2005
Once again the wide world of cinema offers a cache of captivating films. From France the delightful 'Look at Me', Tony Gatlif's 'Exils' and horror/slasher 'The Ordeal'. 'Hotel Rwanda' and documentary 'Darwin's Nightmare' unlock some of Africa's darkest secrets while from Hong Kong came the diverse '2046' and Stephen Chow's comic tour de force 'Kung Fu Hustle'. From the US, Gregg Araki's disturbing 'Mysterious Skin', 'Birth' with Nicole Kidman and understated Southern pot-boiler 'Undertow'. Stand-out documentaries also included 'Wal-mart: The High Cost of Low Price', the incredible 'DiG!' and from North Korea a fascinating insight with 'A State of Mind'.
2046 (2004)
7.5/10
Director: Wong Kar-wai
Starring: Maggie Cheung, Takuya Kimura, Tony Leung (Chiu Wai), Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, Faye W...
Wong Kar-wai's lush companion to 2000's festival hit 'In The Mood For Love', sees Tony Leung return as Hong Kong writer Chow, who has given up journal... Read more
36 Quai des Orfevres (2004)
7.6/10
Director: Olivier Marchal
Starring: Gerard Depardieu, Daniel Auteuil, Andre Dussollier, Valeria Golino, Roschdy Zem
Two of France's most charismatic and enduring actors, Gerard Depardieu and Daniel Auteuil face off as cops competing for the same promotion, using all... Read more
9 Songs (2004)
4.8/10
Director: Michael Winterbottom
Starring: Kieran O'Brien, Margo Stilley
Primarily improvised, this labour of love was shot on digital using a skeleton crew of three and largely self-financed by director Michael Winterbotto... Read more
A Common Thread ( aka Brodeuses ) (2004)
7/10
Director: Eleonore Faucher
Starring: Lola Naymark, Ariane Ascaride, Marie Felix, Thomas Laroppe, Arthur Quehen, Jacki...
Luscious and powerful, this French drama follows Claire, a pregnant teen working in a supermarket who's moved out of home not wanting her parents to k... Read more
A State of Mind (2004)
7.8/10
Director: Daniel Gordon
North Korea's Mass Games bring together over 80,000 peformers to create a mind-boggling spectacle of dance, gymnastics and music in honour of their le... Read more
Ae Fond Kiss ( aka Just A Kiss ) (2004)
7.2/10
Director: Ken Loach
Starring: Eva Birthistle, Atta Taqub, Shamshad Akhtar, Ghizala Avan
Ken Loach and writer Paul Laverty team again ('Sweet Sixteen', 'Carla's Song', 'My Name Is Joe') for this romantic drama set in Glasgow, Scotland wher... Read more
Appleseed (2004)
7/10
Director: Shinji Aramaki
After WWIII there's only one habitable city left - Olympus - where remaining humans live an idyllic life under the watchful eye of a supercomputer and... Read more
Bad Education (2004)
7.5/10
Director: Pedro Almodovar
Starring: Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Fele Martinez, Gael Garcia Bernal, Javier Camara, Lluis Ho...
From acclaimed director Pedro Almodovar ("Talk to Her") comes an outrageous tale of desire, revenge and murder. Filmmaker Enrique (Fele Martinez) gets... Read more
Banana in a Nutshell (2005)
7.1/10
Director: Roseanne Liang
First generation Chinese kiwi, Roseanne Liang began this documentary as something to keep her mind off the fact that her traditional Chinese parents w... Read more
Birth (2004)
6.1/10
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Starring: Anne Heche, Arliss Howard, Lauren Bacall, Nicole Kidman, Ted Levine, Peter Storm...
A ten year widow, Anna (Nicole Kidman) is about to remarry when a mysterious boy (Cameron Bright) convincingly claims he's her late husband reincarnat... Read more