Discover Top Posts Tagged with #diff 2013

So long, farewell, it's time to say goodbye . . . to 2013

2013 has been a year of discovery, learning but most of all new adventures. Documenting the Emirates Lit Fest this year, we learned that creativity is not inborn but nurtured. We learned that humility is the best response to success…but a little bit of showing off can do no harm.

At Comic Con, Dorothy finally found home as we unleashed our inner geek.

From music legends Quincy Jones, Will.i.am and Timbaland, we were reminded that real success comes with hard work and perseverance.

We witnessed the rise of new talent,the fall of the harlem shake and asked our selves for the first time . . .

We celebrated 10 years of DIFF in style, laughter and sleepless nights.

But with the good times, came the hard times.

We said goodbye to a hero.

And embraced a new Doctor.

We're a year older, still a little wobbly here but slightly rock solid there.

To another year of uncertainties, new experiences and brighter futures.

To new beginnings.

Ant Story - The Film Review

We've all done it before; a white lie here, a bit of fibbing there. But what happens when those trivial lies turns to an unhealthy rate?

Bangladesh film director and screenwriter Mostafa Sarwar Farouki, whose films are considered to bring modernism and realism in the Bangladeshi cinema industry, examines in Ant Story how one's determination to pursue his dream can become obsessively unhealthy and create an imbalance.

Ant Story depicts the hopes, limitations and greed of Mithu, a daydreamer and young graduate from a middle class family. Desensitized by the depressing state of his social hierarchy and to counter his deprivation, he dabbles with lying and fantasies, enjoying the world that he created where he believes he is rich. His two worlds, the real world and the world that he created, collides and creates a struggle.

Mithu is joined by Rima, a successful actress, whose perfect life is at risk of crumbling down because of what Mithu had accidentally fallen upon - her mobile phone; one with a possible sex video that would destroy everything she's worked hard for.

It's exciting to see how an underdog character, the person whose dreams we've been rooting for in the beginning surprisingly turns to the unlikely hero, the one who saves the girl's day.

But more compelling to watch unfold is how when that same hero is given with the right incentive (wealth, instant happiness, fulfilled desires) and the right leverage (the kind can destroy's another person's life), can turn him, an endearing hero to a cunning and scheming villain.

With references on youth unemployment, the biggest multi-level marketing scam in Bangladesh, and romanticizing impossible relationships, the film explores on topics such as middle class angst, frustration about the confines of one's culture and the universal desire to look for a shortcut to success and a better life.

As part of our coverage for the 10th Dubai International Film Festival this week (6th December-14th December), we’ll be bringing you the latest updates on the red carpet, film reviews, Q&A with filmmakers, industry panels and workshops. Read other DIFF posts here and watch out for more!

Written by Pamella de Leon

#DIFF 2013 #DIFF 2013 film review #film review #Ant Story #Pamella de Leon

Fruitvale Station - Film Review

Fruitvale Station is based on the true story of how Oscar Grant, who, after resolving to be a better partner, father and son; gets dragged off the subway train in the early hours of New's Year's Day of 2009 and shot in cold blood by a police officer. No apparent reason other than being young, male and black.

After watching 12 Years A Slave this week at DIFF 2013, it’s a chilling reminder of how racism and oppression is alive not only in the past, but continue to plague the present.

Fruitvale Station is a compelling film depicting the predicament of young black men in a society that regards them with suspicion and fear, and often on the receiving end of harsher treatment from law enforcements.

One of the film's prevailing themes is Oscar's inner struggle to change for the better, for both himself and his family, despite an environment and circumstances that tempts him to fall back to a life of negligence and selling drugs.

Above all it captures the people that made his motivations for a better life beautifully: his daughter, mother and girlfriend, humanizing all the more the essence of Oscar Grant. He had dreams and feelings, and we learn to love the people he loves and those who love him too.

If there was a silver lining, it would be that, somehow, they are stronger and bonded by their strength in their time of grief.

There’s a poetic, beautiful inkling of tragedy throughout leading up to his own inevitable terrible end. Perhaps the most saddening was that, like the dog who died because of a casual hit-and-run, he’s powerless to stop his too, no matter how much he tried. Even though it was obvious, we urge and cheer on his futile attempts.

There would a bubble of anger and resentment in you, not only for the social injustice, but for the possibility of what could have been for Oscar Grant and his family.

Written by Pamella de Leon

#DIFF 2013 #DIFF 2013 film review #Film Review #Pamella de Leon #fruitvale station

A journey of 27 years - Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom film review

This review of Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom can do little justice to Chadwick’s impeccable depiction of the life of the legendary Nelson Mandela. Even days after his passing, I am still left baffled on whether to address him as the ‘late’ Mandela, seeing as how Chadwick’s production breathed life right back into him. Goosebumps were inevitable.

Derived from Mandela’s autobiography of the same name; the film depicted a fair (and dare I say human) account of his life despite the 146 minute timeline.

We were witness to Mandela’s prime years, evolving from troublemaker to suave bachelor lawyer then married man and father. We saw him struggle as a black freedom fighter of a pre-dominant white nation – all this within just the first 45 minutes of the movie.

The movie not only depicted his struggle for equal rights, but Mandela’s plight as a family man brought on by acts of poor judgment which eventually led him to lose his first wife, Evelyn Made (Terry Pheto) and ironically meeting his second (and more famed) wife, Winnie.

While the film painted an accurate picture of Mandela’s life before and during his 27 year imprisonment; it was the battles fought on outside of his prison walls that were the main focus of the film - particularly Naomi Harris’ powerful performance as Winnie Mandela. It was Winnie we felt sympathy for, single mother of two and the only connection to Mandela’s movement.

Harris captured the essence of the Winnie’s struggle as she took upon the burden of finishing what her husband had started. There were moments of fear, sympathy and eventually bittersweet sorrow seeing a powerful couple separate on the account of polarizing ideals. Mandela’s release meant the end of Winnie’s 27 years of sole leadership of a party that would not cave in to the government’s proposed deal.

As the story unfolds, you find yourself rooting back for Mandela and his non-violent but cleverly woven approach, only to realize you've always been supporting him; just waiting for the Mandela we knew to appear. This was a testament to Idris Elba’s portrayal, showing us Mandela as human and his transformation to saint hood.

Even though this film could never convey all the achievements and the contributions Mandela had on the world; this film was able to beautifully illustrate why he was so highly revered – perhaps for many generations to come.

Seeing this film screened at the 10th Dubai International Film Festival and on the evening of his memorial, I was reminded time and again about this man’s sacrifice to a cause that was bigger than all of us. Even as the credits rolled, I sat there lost in a conundrum of overwhelming emotions of pride, admiration and disappointment. Disappointed because there will never be anyone like Madeba for years to come.

“Don’t say you’re giving me freedom after 27 years of being away from my wife, failing to see my children grow up – just open the gates and let me go.”

Rest in Peace, Nelson Mandela.

Written by Karthik Menon

#DIFF 2013 #DIFF film review #karthik menon #DIFF13 #film review #Mandela Long Walk to Freedom #long walk to freedom #idris elba

Factory Girl vs. Lunchbox - The review

This year's DIFF bore an excellent selection of films for its 10th edition, and two of some of my most memorable screenings included Lunchbox and Factory Girl. Already lauded by both critics as well as audiences, I feel comfortable in recommending these to anyone interested in watching a fascinating character driven narrative steeped in the culture of the film’s origin.

The one thing that struck me as particularly interesting were the points of comparison and contrast that can drawn between the two films, and how gauging the similarities and differences between them allowed me a chance to better appreciate their characterizations and storylines. Both of the films involve a strong, memorable female protagonist who struggles with a new romance and has to find the strength to overcome the conservatism of her culture. Both films also feature a cast of side characters who, despite being delightfully eccentric, still strike a chord as familiar and highly relatable. And finally, unlike many other national films, both manage to create a storyline that places priority on an individual character driven narrative, rather than allowing the characters to be reduced to stereotypes to showcase the culture of the film’s original nation. Yet it’s not the similarities that make this analysis interesting, but actually the contrasting differences between the two films. Factory Girl is essentially a love story about a young girl who struggles to reconcile her romantic ideals with class discrimination as well as conflicting expectations from society. Lunchbox is also a love story, but here the heroine faces significantly less judgmental ‘slut shaming’ from her contemporaries, and instead has to deal more with inner conflicts rather than outside forces.

Our heroine from Factory Girl faces ostracisation, shaming, slander and ends up coming across more of a reactive rather than a proactive character, as she constantly struggles to maintain her dignity in the face of intensifying opposition. Lunchbox however keeps the heroine’s privacy and dignity guarded and intact, allowing her the space required to make her own decisions and act according to internal motivations and desires, rather than simply reacting to external forces. And yet, between the two films, it’s Factory Girl that ends on a high, happy, victorious note that will send audience’s feet tapping with a closing dance number, whereas ‘Lunchbox’ ends on a more somber, melancholy, thoughtful note that will leave the audience wishing for more.

My review probably indicates that I preferred Lunchbox to Factory Girl and indeed the solution to the heroine’s problems in Factory Girl leaves me a little disquieted with it’s deus-ex-machine style resolution. However, even taking that into account, I still highly recommend both Factory Girl and Lunchbox for their memorable characters, witty dialogue, meaty plotline and thoughtful and thought-provoking insights into distinct cultures as well as a non-Hollywood style of filmmaking.

#saba siddiqi #DIFF film review #DIFF 2013 film review #DIFF 2013 #factory girl #Lunchbox #Film Review

Unforgiven - The film review

In its opening scene, the audiences are introduced to the harsh conditions borne by its lead character, Jubei as he (with the help of his two children) ploughs through the snow hardened grounds of Northern Hokkaido and later reluctantly forced to leave his home and children behind to join his friend and once comrade Baba Kingo on a bounty run, commissioned by a small town’s sisterhood of prostitutes in a hunt against two rogue ex-samurai responsible for viscously scarring and injuring one of their own.

Based on the Eastwood directed and written film of the same name, Lee Sang-il heavily explores the notions of justice and revenge in post war Japan; 13 years after the Meiji revolution.

As Jubei and Kingo embark on their quest, they meet Ainu native Goro, whose antics and puffery provide comic relief to the film’s dominating dark undertones. While he starts off as an annoying side kick, his character soon develops the more we learn of his motivations.

Watanbe’s performance as the reserved and mysterious Jubei is powerful, bringing to the character a layer of strength through subtle inferences of vulnerability and emotional conflict. Carefully balanced by Emoto Akira’s Kingo, the audience’s only connection to Jubei’s past.

And where it shadows the original in its themes of vengeance and power play, Lee’s Unforgiven is unique in its carefully woven portrayal of death and murder, that questions the frail threads of morality and the circumstances of revenge. In short, where Eastwood’s version looks at redemption, Lee’s is a story of consequences.

Fueled by the growing conflicts between Jubei and the town’s western clad Chief Ichizo, the film is a depiction of old versus new regimes. With references to the plight of the Ainu tribes who were massacred during the Meiji era; the film resonates with modern issues on loss of identity, traditions and heritage - eventually proving that the sword can be mightier than the gun.

#Maha Sidahmed #Unforgiven #Yurusarezaru Mono #film review #DIFF 2013 #DIFF #DIFF review #Watanabe Ken #Lee Sang il #Emoto Akira #clint eastwood #yuya yagira

Fish and Cat : A review

Fish and Cat is a prime example of what happens when a filmmaker's obsession with film technique overwhelms all sense of narrative and content. The structure of the film is fascinating; portrayed in one, long, unedited, uncut long shot, and yet still somehow incorporating a non-linear timeline.

A plethora of characters are given their separated moments to showcase their personalities in front of the camera, with their lives inter cutting with one another at key moments in the story.

And yet, despite all this delightful experimentation with the depiction of time and events, I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this film to a cinema goer.

The main problem with the film is with dialogue, narrative, character and all in all - basic content. The story is split between far too many characters, all of whom have long-winded expositions about their background details without really providing a sense of what their individual dreams, desires and fears.

None of them are given a chance to grow beyond what we see during their very first instance in front of the camera; their interactions with one another seem soulless, self-absorbed and pointless; and none provide any sense of closure to their particular story arc.

Overall, narratively speaking, the film gives a very unsatisfying experience. I would recommend the film as more of a rental than a cinema experience. At least with a rental, one can fast-forward through all the repetitive, pointless sections to check out the overall structure and technique.

Written by Saba Siddiqi, image credits DIFF 2013

#DIFF 2013 #saba siddiqi #Film Review #DIFF 2013 film review #Fish and Cat #mahi va gorbeh

Stories from Iraq : Gulf Voices 2

A bride-to-be destroyed by jealousy, an ancient myth brought to life and lastly, the story of young romance - all centered on the cultural and social frameworks of old and new Iraq.

Gulf Voices, an initiative by the Dubai International Film Festival to develop and showcase grassroots projects for emerging filmmakers in the region; returned for the festival’s 10th edition.

In its second segment (Gulf Voices 2), the category premiered three shorts from directors Alaa Shaker, Furat Al Jamil and Rizgar Husen.

Shaker’s This is my night was a brave attempt at highlighting the grim realities of the post-war Iraqi community, where guns were inherited and blood was commonplace. Similarly, Husen’s The day is gone, gave a brief perspective on the plight of the Kurdish, through the story of a young girl and her conflicts with the nephew of her employer. Baghdad Night on the other hand transported you to the old streets of the capital through a series of taxi rides with a mysterious woman submerged in folkloric subtext and reminiscent of the old days.

However, the three films suffer from a problem common to most aspiring and developing filmmakers - the development of strong characters. The narrative captured and conveyed aspects of Iraqi culture that were both mesmerizing and intriguing, but the the audience did not get a sense on what the personalities of the film wanted, desired and needed. This was one case where the culture overpowered the characters, leaving no real sense of separation between Iraqi culture and an Iraqi person.

Catch the next screening of Gulf Voices 2 tomorrow (Dec 9) at 12:45 Mall of the Emirates

#Gulf Voices #Gulf Voices 2 #DIFF13 #DIFF 2013 #Alaa Shaker #Furat Al Jamil #Rizgar Husen