And my favourites from the Dubai Film Festival were :
The Descendants
It was difficult to categorise this film, yes it was funny in a cool way, but a key part of the plot is mum lying in a coma, the film doesn’t dwell at all on the issues surrounding the need to turn off the machines keeping her alive, but rather on all the problems she caused while conscious in her role as wife and mother. Set in Hawaii, you can almost feel the balmy breezes on your face while watching this film and the fresh, tropical lushness of the flowers and foliage is surreal. The detail is completely authentic down to the yodellers in the Kon Tiki type restaurant through to the brightly coloured floral shirts that are worn by rich and poor alike in Hawaii. George Clooney as father to two young girls with their own way of coping struggles to get it right and wonders where and at what point he went wrong. But this isn’t a depressing film, more a darkly comic family melodrama in an unusual setting, go see it and tell me what you thought. It stars George Clooney and Shailene Woodley, who has just been nominated for a Golden Globe award. The film is directed by Alexander Payne. This was the Dubai Film Festival’s choice for the Cinema of the World Gala.
Terra Firma
This film is set on a tiny island off the coast of Sicily and won special jury prize at the 2011 Venice Bienniale. It was chosen as the Dubai Film Festival’s Cultural bridge film and in his pre movie speech, not surprisingly the Italian scriptwriter Emmanuale Crialese couldn’t get over how ‘big’ everything is in Dubai. The film focuses on three generations of a fishing family who traditionally have lived off the land but now times are changing and tourism is where the money is, that is if you can hide or shy away from the glaring issue of illegal African refugees landing any way they can on the island. It is a crime to help them but the law of the sea is never to leave anyone to drown. The family secretly helps a young pregnant woman in labour and her son, terrified of being found out. What is the right thing to do ? A beautifully shot film with completely authentic characters who face difficult decisions. Watch the film and tell me what you would have done in this family’s place ?
And a couple of good short films…
Modern Family: South Korea
More family drama this time in the form of a harrowing short film exploring the lengths parents will go to cover up mistakes of their children, but when the mistake involves the death of another child, how far should you go? The director Kwang Bin-Kim wanted to focus on the importance of a father’s role in bringing up a young family and the questions between wife and husband along the lines of Do you know how hard it is to look after children, What do you do all day, How hard can it be to look after a child ? will have universal resonance across all cultures, see this film if you dare, the director apologised for the brutality in this film before it started.
Thief: Taiwan
A charming story, cleverly shot in the environs of a famous Taipei night market, the Thief steals a mobile phone, without realizing the tenacity of the owner who stops at nothing to get it back. But mobile phones talk to us these days and what is revealed is not pleasant. With a great sound track and two completely different characters, this film was a perfect parcel of a first intsallment and I for one certainly wanted more, well done to young team of Director Jay Chern and Wang Xi-Jie from Taiwan. A treat for teenagers and adults alike.
