FIPRESCI - Latin American Lifetime Achievement Award 2010: Pablo Trapero and Martina Gusman

Pablo Trapero is not yet 40 years old but has already directed six films and produced even more, an unusual feat not only in Argentina, where he lives and works with his wife - actress and coproducer Martina Gusman -, but worldwide.

Since the beginning of his career and, later, when he started working with Gusman, Trapero showed a particular talent for making personal films, filled with his own themes and obsessions, that also had commercial appeal. Carancho, his latest film, was the most successful of his career and is, from beginning to end, a rough and tough 'Trapero' film, with no concessions to the so-called 'market', even when the main actor is Argentina's top star Ricardo Darín.

As the official story already goes, Trapero was a big part of the seismic generation change that took place in Argentine Cinema during the second part of the 90's. His first movie, Crane World (Mundo Grúa), gave him international visibility, winning awards in Venice, Rotterdam and Havana, among many others. Crane World, a small film shot over weekends with friends, was also a surprise commercial hit in Argentina, allowing him to create a bigger, more dense, story about police corruption in El Bonaerense (2002), a film that was shown in Cannes.

After forming the production company, Matanza Cine, and starting to work with Martina Gusman, Trapero continued to direct films that showed different facets of his cinematic personality: from the low key comedy of Rolling Family (Familia rodante, 2004) to the tough family drama Born and Bred (Nacido y criado, 2006), a film in which his wife (a professional actress) also started appearing in front of the camera.

With Lion's Den (Leonera, 2008) and Carancho (2010), Trapero reconfirmed his place as one of Latin America's top filmmakers. Both were very well received in Cannes — Lion's Den was his first in competition for the Palme d'Or — and became hugely successful at home. And both, of course, showed the considerable strength and talent of Gusman as a lead actress, confirming the great instinct of Trapero with his characteristically unusual choice of actors. Her performance in Lions' Den has been bestowed the high accolade as one of the greatest in the history of Argentine cinema.

Carancho marked a new level of risk and exposition for Trapero: working with a well known star (with very few exceptions, his films always used little-known or non professional actors) such as Darín. And he handled it very well, creating a film that can be watched as a companion piece to El Bonaerense: another incursion into the dark world of crime in the Buenos Aires province. Carancho is a film noir with a realistic streak. And, as Lion's Den before it, a story about the pursuit of love even in the most difficult circumstances. You can say the same about all his movies. As different as they may look from the outside, at the core there are films about fighting moral corruption and finding a place in a tough world, with the help of the very few people who you trust and love.

A 'family guy', Trapero always used members of his own 'familia' in his movies, most famously his grandmother, Graciela Chironi, a main character in Crane World and Familia rodante. The same can be said about the structure of his company and his crew: a group of friends and collaborators who have been working together for more than a decade creating that same sense of 'home' their films have.

Pablo Trapero and Martina Gusman are one of the biggest creative forces of the last decade in Argentine cinema and will doubtless be a great inspiration for future generations of Latin American directors and producers.

Diego Lerer
© FIPRESCI 2010

Festival de Toronto 2010: Contemporary World Cinema

Africa United Debs Gardner-Paterson, United Kingdom World Premiere Africa United tells the extraordinary story of three Rwandan children and their bid to achieve their lifelong dream – to take part in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Football World Cup in Johannesburg.

Aftershock Feng Xiaogang, China North American Premiere The most successful Chinese movie of all time, Aftershock is based on the novel of the same name by Chinese Canadian author Zhang Ling. An intimate epic, the film sweeps across three crucial decades in recent Chinese history and explores the resilience of a family devastated by the 1976 Tangshan earthquake.

All About Love Ann Hui , Hong Kong, China International Premiere All About Love takes a rare look at not only the lives of queer women, but also the challenges of creating a family. Ann Hui expertly balances the serious themes of motherhood, sexuality and discrimination, rarely addressed in Hong Kong films, with wit, humour and compassion.

Anything You Want Achero Mañas, Spain International Premiere Four year-old Dafne's life is unhinged when her mother Alicia suddenly dies. Her father Leo tries to be both father and mother to her, but Dafne really just wants her mom. Leo strives to be just that, and in the process, nearly loses his own identity.

Bad Faith Kristian Petri, Sweden International Premiere On her way home from work Mona finds the victim of a serial killer. She is shocked but the experience triggers something within and her fascination becomes obsession. She decides to find the killer on her own. Her hunt leads to violent confrontation, not only with the killer but also with herself.

Behind Blue Skies Hannes Holm, Sweden World Premiere In Hannes Holm's beautifully crafted Behind Blue Skies, Bill Skarsgård stars as a young man on the cusp of manhood who escapes his troubled home to work at a summer resort, but somehow finds himself embroiled in one of the most scandalous criminal cases in 1970s Sweden in this affectionately mounted period piece based on actual events.

Black Ocean Marion Hänsel, Belgium/France/Germany North American Premiere Three young boys aboard a French naval vessel in 1972 take part in nuclear tests in Mururoa, in the Pacific. Black Ocean explores about the relationships of the men on board who are confronted with discipline, violence, solitude and occasionally, friendship.

Blessed Events Isabelle Stever, Germany World Premiere Thirty-seven-year-old Simone decides to go out alone on New Year’s Eve. The next morning, she wakes up next to a stranger, and a few weeks later discovers that she’s pregnant. When she runs into the stranger again she is surprised by his reaction.

Break Up Club Barbara Wong, Hong Kong International Premiere Barbara Wong captures the mood of Hong Kong's young generation and delivers an ultra-modern romantic comedy about the end of one's innocence and the understanding that love is ultimately about the sacrifices one must make.

Carancho Pablo Trapero, Argentina/South Korea/France/Chile North American Premiere Sosa (Ricardo Darin) is a lawyer who haunts hospital waiting rooms hoping to represent the victims of traffic accidents in insurance claims. When he falls in love with ambulance medic Lujan, he tries to leave this dark business but the shady law firm that he works for won’t let him off that easily.

Chico & Rita Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal, Tono Errando, Spain/United Kingdom North American Premiere Oscar-winning director Fernando Trueba teams up with famed designer Javier Mariscal and co-director Tono Errando to create an epic animated love story that occurs around the time of the Cuban Revolution. Highlighting a pivotal moment in the evolution of jazz and travelling from Havana to New York, Chico & Rita is a tribute to the music, culture and people of Cuba.

Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame Tsui Hark, China North American Premiere Based on the iconic figure of Di Renjie, a legendary minister of state in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD) who was known for his ability to solve the most complicated cases, Tsui Hark's Detective Dee (Andy Lau) is a uniquely appealing counterpart to his modern western equivalent, Sherlock Holmes.

The Edge Alexey Uchitel, Russia World Premiere The arrival of a decorated war hero takes a Siberian labour camp by storm. After assuming control of the region’s only steam engine, he sets out to find a ghost engine on a nearby island populated by an undead girl with a railway obsession.

Even the Rain Icíar Bollaín Spain/France/Mexico World Premiere Filmmaker Sebastian (Gael García Bernal) travels to Bolivia to shoot a film about the Spanish conquest of America. He and his crew arrive during the tense time of the Cochabamba water crisis. The lines between past and present, and fiction and film, become increasingly blurred in Iciar Bollain's latest feature, Even the Rain.

The First Grader Justin Chadwick, United Kingdom World Premiere In a remote Kenyan primary school hundreds of children are jostling for a chance for the free education newly promised by the Kenyan government. One new applicant causes astonishment when he knocks on the door of the school: Maruge, a Mau Mau veteran in his eighties who is desperate to learn to read.

The Fourth Portrait Chung Mong-Hong, Taiwan North American Premiere The Fourth Portrait casts a sobering look at the troubling issues of domestic violence, and the difficult family dynamics that are born of marriages of convenience.

Home for Christmas Bent Hamer, Norway/Germany/Sweden World Premiere Norwegian veteran Bent Hamer (Kitchen Stories) returns with this look at fractured families at Christmas time. The film shuttles between serious drama and the gently absurdist comedy for which Hamer is well-known.

How I Ended This Summer Alexei Popogrebsky, Russia Canadian Premiere Two meteorologists are isolated on an Arctic island. When the two-way radio transmits some bad news that requires a middleman, it’s up to the young intern to inform his veteran colleague. The problem is that he never seems to find the right time.

The Human Resources Manager Eran Riklis, Israel/Germany/France/Romania North American Premiere A tragi-comedy centers on the HR manager of Israel's largest industrial bakery as he sets out to save the reputation of his business and prevent the publication of a defamatory article – the catch is that he has to take a coffin 1000 kilometres into rural Romania to do it.

The Hunter Rafi Pitts, Iran North American Premiere Recently released from prison, Ali makes the most of his reunion with his wife and young daughter, amidst much talk of the upcoming elections and promises of change. When tragedy strikes, Ali takes matters into his own hands and the line between hunter and hunted becomes difficult to define.

I Am Slave Gabriel Range, United Kingdom International Premiere From the award winning team behind Death of a President and The Last King of Scotland, and inspired by real life events, I Am Slave is a controversial thriller about London’s shocking slave trade, and one woman’s fight for freedom.

Jucy Louise Alston, Australia World Premiere Jackie and Lucy are best friends who spend all their time together, but not everyone approves of their “womance.” Accused of being weird and codependent, they set out to prove their maturity. Jackie gets the guy and Lucy gets the job, but can their friendship survive their newfound independence?

Lapland Odyssey Dome Karukoski, Finland World Premiere Three unemployed young men set off on a desperate journey to locate a digital conversion box in the north of Finland. Wildly funny, Dome Karukoski's Lapland Odyssey is a Finnish cousin to Harold and Kumar and Fubar.

Late Autumn Kim Tae-Yong, South Korea World Premiere Anna (Tang Wei) is on her way to Seattle to attend her mother's funeral while on a special weekend release from prison. On the bus, she meets Hoon (Hyun Bin), a "companion for hire" for lonely, older women. Both are running away but both find something in each other while spending a day together.

Leap Year Michael Rowe, Mexico North American Premiere In this transgressive erotic drama, Laura Lopez lives a lonely existence in her Mexico City apartment. On her calendar, the 29th of February is ominously circled, its significance becoming more apparent as the leap year approaches.

Life, Above All Oliver Schmitz, South Africa/Germany North American Premiere After the death of her newborn sister, 12-year-old Chanda learns of a rumour that spreads like wildfire through her small, dust-ridden village near Johannesburg. When it destroys her family and forces her mother to flee, Chandra leaves home and school in search of her mother and the truth.

The Light Thief Aktan Arym Kubat, Kyrgyzstan/Germany/France/Netherlands North American Premiere A funny and touching portrait of small-town politics in a rapidly globalizing world that follows Svet-ake, an electrician in a small Kyrgyz village who has been stealing electricity to help the impoverished local residents. When a wealthy land developer arrives to buy up the land, Svet-ake shares with him his dream to populate the valley with modern windmills – but soon realizes not everyone has the village’s best interests at heart.

Mamma Gógó Fridrik Thor Fridriksson, Iceland International Premiere Icelandic master Fridrik Thor Fridriksson returns with this disarmingly honest, semi-autobiographical portrait of a filmmaker's relationship with his ailing mother. Simultaneously poignant and funny, Mamma Gógó is fuelled by compassion for those who brought us into this world and also pays tribute to the director's artistic influences.

Matariki Michael Bennett, New Zealand World Premiere A violent tragedy has a harrowing impact on eight different lives in a diverse South Auckland community.

The Matchmaker Avi Nesher, Israel International Premiere In 1968 Haifa, a teenage boy gets a summer job with a Holocaust survivor who makes ends meet by brokering marriages and smuggling goods. Throughout the summer, the boy discovers the intriguing underbelly of Haifa and its community of Holocaust survivors.

Meek's Cutoff Kelly Reichardt, USA North American Premiere It's 1845 and a wagon team of three families have hired a guide to take them on the Oregon Trail and over the Cascade Mountains. They become lost and while suffering from hunger, thirst and fear, they encounter a Native American who forces them to reassess everything.

My Joy Sergei Loznitsa, Germany/Ukraine/The Netherlands North American Premiere Truck driver Georgy sets out on a provincial Russian motorway for a routine delivery but a series of chance encounters see his journey spiral out of control. A roadside police check, a war veteran and a young prostitute lead him to a village from which there appears to be no way out.

Neds Peter Mullan, United Kingdom/France/Italy World Premiere Set in 1970s Glasgow, this film tells the story of a shy and intelligent young boy who, through a series of circumstances, turns into a NED – a non-educated delinquent. Attending a new school, he becomes increasingly violent and aggressive, all the while searching for a way out.

Of Gods and Men Xavier Beauvois, France North American Premiere Based on a true incident where a group of Christian monks were killed in Algeria in 1995, Of Gods and Men follows the spiritual lifestyle of the monks, their interaction with the locals and the events that lead up to the confrontation with a group of Islamic fundamentalist insurgents.

Oki's Movie Hong Sangsoo, South Korea North American Premiere Oki's Movie is comprised of four short films featuring three main characters with different but overlapping roles. The final short, Oki's Movie, is a story of a film student, Oki, who makes a film about two men she has dated. In her film, she makes a cinematographic construction of her experiences of coming to Acha Mountain with each man a year apart.

Outbound Bogdan George Apetri, Romania North American Premiere Matilda, a feisty woman-child with a sordid past, is out on prison leave. Are 24 hours enough to make up for her mistakes and skip out of the country in time for a brand new life?

Sensation Tom Hall, Ireland International Premiere Sensation details the relationship between Tipperary farmer Donal Duggan and a veteran Kiwi escort. They begin as client and call girl, evolve into something like lovers, then business partners and finally co-defendants.

The Solitude Of Prime Numbers Saverio Constanzo, Italy North American Premiere Two youngsters discover that they are doomed to live parallel lives, always linked but never joined. One has to deal with the effects of a serious accident while the other must come to grips with negligence that led to a death. As they grow into adults, they discover that their singularity results in solitude.

Tender Son – The Frankenstein Project Kornél Mundruczó Hungary/Germany/Austria North American Premiere Long ago, a young man fathered a child without ever knowing what became of him. Now 17, his son Rudi returns home hoping to reunite with his family after years spent in an institution. A terrible event soon changes everything and the father has no choice but to accompany his son on his inevitable brutal path and their common search for redemption.

Tracker Ian Sharp, United Kingdom/New Zealand World Premiere A former Boer War guerrilla in New Zealand is sent to bring back a Maori accused of killing a British soldier.

Three Tom Tykwer, Germany North American Premiere Returning to the rule-breaking freedom of early films like Run Lola Run, Tykwer introduces a sophisticated Berlin couple who both start affairs with the same man, putting them on a collision course.

Silent Souls Aleksei Fedorchenko, Russia North American Premiere When Miron's beloved wife Tanya passes away, he asks his best friend Aist to help him say goodbye according to the rituals of the Merya culture, an ancient Finno-Ugric tribe from Lake Nero. The two men set out on a road trip thousands of miles across the boundless lands.

State of Violence Khalo Matabane, South Africa/France International Premiere In his follow-up to Conversations on a Sunday Afternoon, Matabane delivers a potent drama about a South African corporate leader whose past as a violent revolutionary comes back to threaten him.

White Irish Drinkers John Gray, USA World Premiere In this coming of age story set in 1975 working-class Brooklyn, two teenage brothers living with their abusive father and their well-meaning but ineffective mother are caught up in a life of petty crime.

Womb Benedek Fliegauf, Germany/Hungary/France North American Premiere Rebecca has waited 12 long years to be reunited with her childhood sweetheart, only to lose him again in a fatal accident. The only difference is, now she can bring him back from the dead.

Previously Announced Contemporary World Cinema titles include: Crying Out (Robin Aubert), MODRA (Ingrid Veninger), A Night for Dying Tigers (Terry Miles), Route 132 (Louis Bélanger), Small Town Murder Songs (Ed Gass-Donnelly).

Festival de San Sebastián 2010: Zabaltegi - Perlas y Especiales

Zabaltegi–Perlas presentará este año, como viene siendo habitual, películas de directores consagrados que han participado en otros grandes festivales o films que han obtenido premios en estos mismos certámenes (Sundance, Cannes o Venecia, entre otros) y que aún no se han estrenado en España.

Pero también se van a programar títulos que se han convertido en las sorpresas de los festivales en los que han participado y que muestran la riqueza y la diversidad de la creación cinematográfica a nivel mundial. El Festival de San Sebastián les ofrecerá una segunda oportunidad para que puedan ser descubiertos por la crítica mundial o los distribuidores internacionales, así como por el público donostiarra.

Las películas de Zabaltegi-Perlas optan al Premio TCM del Público, dotado con 70.000 euros para el importador español del film ganador. Un segundo premio de 35.000 euros se destina a la película europea que obtenga mayor votación. Ambos premios no son acumulables.

Algunas de las películas seleccionadas para Zabaltegi - Perlas han obtenido importantes premios: Bal (Miel) de Semih Kaplanoglu, Oso de Oro en Berlín; Tuan Yuan (Apart Together) de Wang Quan’an, Oso de Plata al Mejor Guión en Berlín; Happythankyoumoreplease, de Josh Radner, Premio del Público en Sundance; The Oath, de Laura Poitras, Excellence in Cinematography Award en Sundance: US Documentary y Poetry, de Lee Changdong, Premio al Mejor Guión en Cannes.

El público también podrá disfrutar de los últimos films de directores ya consagrados como Pablo Trapero (Carancho), que se presentó en Un Certain Regard de Cannes; Danis Tanovic (Cirkus Columbia), que se presentará en La Mostra de Venecia y los ya mencionados Lee Chandong y Wang Quan’an.

Completan la sección dos documentales que se presentaron en la Berlinale, Exit Through the Gift Shop, del artista plástico Bansky y How Much Does Your Building Weigh Mr. Foster?, de Norberto López Amado y Carlos Carcas; Le Quattro Volte de Michelangelo Frammartino (Cannes – Quinzaine des Réalisateurs) y Barney’s Version, de Richard J. Lewis, que competirá por el León de Oro en Venecia.

Por otro lado, Zabaltegi-Especiales se conforma como espacio abierto en el que figurarán, tres propuestas de especial interés. José Luis Guerin regresa a San Sebastián con Guest tras obtener el Premio Especial del Jurado en el año 2001 con En Construcción, mientras que Isaki Lacuesta, que compitió en la Sección Oficial en 2009 y obtuvo el Premio Fipresci con Los Condenados, presentará La noche que no acaba. Completa la sección Yves Saint Laurent, l’Amour Fou de Pierre Thoretton.

ZABALTEGI - PERLAS

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BAL (MIEL)
Turquía – Alemania
Dirección: Semih Kaplanoglu
Intérpretes: Bora Altas, Erdal Besikcioglu, Tülin Özen

Yusuf tiene seis años y acaba de empezar el colegio, donde aprende a leer y a escribir. Su padre Yakup es apicultor. Se adentra regularmente en los bosques para colgar las colmenas de los árboles más altos. El bosque montañoso está lleno de misterios para Yusuf, que disfruta acompañando a su padre. Hasta que un día las abejas desaparecen y Yakup decide adentrarse en el bosque para descubrir qué ha ocurrido. Oso de Oro en Berlín 2010.

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BARNEY’S VERSION
Canadá - Italia
Dirección: Richard J. Lewis
Intérpretes: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Rachelle Lefevre, Dustin Hofmann, Minnie Driver

Barney's Version es el relato cálido, sensato y lleno de humor de Barney Panofsky (Paul Giamatti), un hombre aparentemente corriente que tiene una vida extraordinaria. Una confesión honesta contada desde el punto de vista de Barney, la película cubre cuatro décadas y dos continentes y nos transporta por varios episodios de su inusual historia. Está su primera esposa, Clara (Raquel Lefevre), un ser libre, de flagrante infidelidad y roja cabellera con quien Barney vive brevemente en Roma. La segunda Sra. P (Minnie Driver) es una princesa judía riquísima que no hace más que ir de compras y hablar, sin darse cuenta de que Barney no le escucha. En la misma fiesta de esa suntuosa boda Barney conoce y empieza a perseguir a Miriam (Rosamund Pike), su tercera esposa, la madre de sus dos hijos y el amor de su vida. Con su padre Izzy (Dustin Hoffman) como compañero de aventuras, Barney nos hace pasar por las muchas subidas y unos cuantos bajones de su larga y colorida vida. No sólo resulta que Barney es un romántico impenitente, sino que además es capaz de actos de galantería furtiva, de generosidad y bondad cuando todos – él menos que nadie – lo esperamos. La suya es una vida gloriosamente plena, interpretada a lo grande. Y en el centro está un héroe inverosímil, el inolvidable Barney Panofsky. Participa en la Sección Oficial de Venecia y en el Festival de Toronto.

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BURIED (ENTERRADO)
España
Dirección: Rodrigo Cortés
Intérpretes: Ryan Reynolds, Robert Paterson, José Luis García Pérez, Stephen Tobolowsky, Samantha Mathis, Warner Loughlin

Paul Conroy, padre de familia y contratista civil en Irak, despierta enterrado vivo en un viejo ataúd de madera. Sin saber quién lo ha puesto ahí ni mucho menos por qué, su única oportunidad para escapar de su agónica pesadilla es un teléfono móvil. La cobertura precaria, la falta de batería y la escasez de oxígeno son sus peores obstáculos en una carrera a vida o muerte contra el tiempo: Paul sólo dispone de 90 minutos para lograr su rescate. Ha participado en la Sección Park at Midnight del Festival de Sundance y en los Festivales de Deauville y Toronto.

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CARANCHO
Argentina – Chile – Francia – Corea del Sur
Dirección: Pablo Trapero
Intérpretes: Ricardo Darín, Martina Gusman

En Argentina mueren cada año más de 8.000 personas en accidentes de tráfico. Detrás de cada una de estas tragedias hay una auténtica industria basada en las compensaciones de los seguros y en la debilidad de la ley. Sosa es un abogado que recorre las salas de urgencias de los hospitales de la sanidad pública y las comisarías en busca de posibles clientes. Luján es una joven médica recién llegada de provincias. La historia de amor empieza la noche en que Luján y Sosa se conocen en la calle. Ella intenta salvar la vida de un hombre; él intenta que sea su cliente. Presentada en la sección Un Certain Regard del Festival de Cannes.

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CIRKUS COLUMBIA
Francia – Bosnia Herzegovina – Bélgica – Gran Bretaña – Alemania – Eslovenia
Dirección: Danis Tanovic
Intérpretes: Miki Manojlovic, Boris Ler, Mira Furlan, Jelena Stupljanin, Mario Knezovic, Milan Strljic

Bosnia y Herzegovina, 1991. Los comunistas han perdido el poder y Divko Buntic vuelve al pueblo en el que creció a reclamar su casa familiar. Después de 20 años de exilio en Alemania, Divko aparece en su ostentoso Mercedes con su jovencita novia sexy, Azra, el gato negro de la suerte, Bonny, y los bolsillos llenos de marcos alemanes. Divko utiliza su dinero y conexiones para desahuciar a la fuerza a su esposa Lucija, de la que está separado, pero hace lo posible por reencontrarse con su hijo Martin, de 20 años. Cuando desaparece Bonny, el gato que Divko adora, todo el pueblo se vuelca en su busqueda, para embolsarse la recompensa. La caza diaria del gato perdido mina la fragil relación de Divko con Azra y da pie a una atracción inesperada pero intensa entre Azra y Martin. Ocupados como están con sus preocupaciones cotidianas, la mayoría de los del pueblo parecen hacer caso omiso del rumor de disturbios políticos: Croacia se ha independizado, todos los Yugoslavos se ven forzados a posicionarse, y los serbios empiezan a bombardear Dubrovnik. A pesar del estado de suma alerta, muchos no pueden imaginarse todavía que nada ni nadie pueda separar a Bosnia y Herzegovina. Inauguró el Festival de Sarajevo y ha sido seleccionada en Venecia (Venice Days) y Toronto.

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EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
EE.UU. - Gran Bretaña
Dirección: Bansky
Intervienen: Banksy, Thierry Guetta, Shepard Fairey, Invader

Exit Through the Gift Shop es la historia de Thierry Guetta, un excéntrico comerciante francés afincado en Los Ángeles, aficionado a grabar todo lo que ocurre a su alrededor. Un día decide ponerse tras la cámara para realizar una película sobre el arte urbano y algunos de los más célebres artistas del street art, entre los que además de Banksy se encuentran artistas como Invader o Shephard Fairey. En medio de la grabación, Banksy decide darle la vuelta a la cámara y grabar a Guetta, quien alentado por el propio Banksy se adentra en el fascinante mundo del arte urbano con el alias de Mr. Brainwash. Presentada en los festivales de Sundance, en la Sección Oficial de Berlín y en Deauville.

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HAPPYTHANKYOUMOREPLEASE
EE.UU.
Dirección: Josh Radnor
Intérpretes: Josh Radnor, Malin Ackerman, Kate Mara, Zoe Kazan, Pablo Schreiber, Tony Hale

El joven escritor Sam Wexler (Josh Radnor) se despierta tarde, y con resaca, para asistir a una importante reunión con una de las editoriales más prestigiosas de Nueva York. De camino, se encuentra con un niño perdido en el metro y se hace cargo de él. Tras intentar, infructuosamente, localizar a la familia del pequeño, decide llevarlo a su cita en la editorial, lo que supone un estrepitoso fracaso. La vida de Sam gira en torno a sus amigos: Annie (Malin Ackerman), Charlie (Pablo Schrieber), Mary Catherine (Zoe Kazan) y Mississippi (Kate Mara), una hermosa camarera y cantante que le hace plantearse una nueva vida pero que puede hacer tambalearse todo lo que le rodea... Premio del Público en el Festival de Sundance.

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HOW MUCH DOES YOUR BUILDING WEIGH, MR. FOSTER?
Gran Bretaña – España
Dirección: Norberto López Amado y Carlos Carcas
Intervienen: Norman Foster, Tony Hunt, George Weidenfeld, Richard Rogers, Bono, Deyan Sudjic

How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster? narra la trayectoria vital de uno de los arquitectos más emblemáticos del siglo XXI y su inquebrantable pasión por mejorar la calidad de vida a través del diseño. La película recoge los orígenes de Foster y cómo sus sueños e influencias inspiraron la creación de edificios como el aeropuerto de Pekín (el más grande del mundo), el Reichstag, el edificio Hearst de Nueva York y construcciones como el puente mas alto del planeta, el viaducto Millau, en Francia, entre otros. En los próximos años, gran parte de la humanidad migrara del campo para habitar las ciudades: Foster ofrece algunas sorprendentes soluciones a los problemas que este acontecimiento histórico originará. Participó en Berlinale Special

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THE OATH
EE.UU.
Dirección: Laura Poitras

The Oath cuenta la historia de Abu Jandal, que había sido guardaespaldas de Osama bin Laden, y Salim Hamdan, prisionero en Guantánamo y primer hombre sometido a los controvertidos tribunales militares. Rodada en Yemen y en la Bahía de Guantánamo, Cuba, The Oath es el drama familiar de dos hombres cuyo encuentro fatídico en 1996 les conduce a Osama bin Laden, el 11 de Septiembre, la prisión de Guantánamo y la Corte Suprema de los EEUU. La película empieza cuando Salim Hamdan tiene que hacer frente a la acusación de crímenes de guerra en Guantánamo, mientras que Abu Jandal es un hombre libre que conduce su taxi en Yemen. Premio Excellence Award: US Documentary en el Festival de Sundance y presentada en el Forum de la Berlinale 2010.

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POETRY
Corea del Sur
Dirección: Lee Changdong
Intérpretes: Naesang An, Hira Kim, David Lee, Junghee Yoon

Mija vive con su nieto adolescente en una pequeña ciudad dormitorio cerca del río Han. Mija es una señora a la que le gusta llevar sombreros floreados y ropa elegante, pero también es una persona imprevisible llena de curiosidad. Se apunta por casualidad a un taller de “poesía” en un centro cultural del barrio, y por primera vez en su vida se ve en la obligación de escribir un poema. El primer paso que da en busca de inspiración poética es observar la vida diaria a su alrededor y en la que nunca se ha fijado. De pronto, una nueva energía se apodera de Mija, como si fuese una niña que acaba de descubrir la vida. Pero cuando debe enfrentarse a una realidad mucho más dura de lo que jamás había imaginado, se da cuenta de que la vida no es tan maravillosa como creía…Premio al Mejor Guión en Cannes 2010.

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LE QUATTRO VOLTE
Italia
Dirección: Michelangelo Frammartino

Le Quattro Volte es una visión poética de los ciclos de la vida y de la naturaleza, de las tradiciones olvidadas de un lugar fuera del tiempo. Una película que acompaña al espectador a un mundo desconocido y mágico, para descubrir el secreto de cuatro vidas misteriosamente entrelazadas entre sí. Presentada en la Quinzaine des Réalisateurs de Cannes.

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TUAN YUAN / APART TOGETHER

China
Dirección: Wang Quan'an
Intérpretes: Lisa Lu, Ling Feng, Xu Caigen, Monica Mo, Ma Xiaoqing

Liu regresa a su ciudad natal, Shanghai, después de pasar 50 años en Taiwan. Y a su vuelta encuentra a su primer amor, Qiao, a la que abandonó embarazada. En ese tiempo Qiao se ha casado y creado una familia. Pero Liu está empeñado en que la familia dé su aprobación para llevársela con él. Oso de Plata al Mejor Guión en Berlín 2010.

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ZABALTEGI – ESPECIALES

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GUEST
España
Dirección: José Luis Guerin

Durante la promoción de una película por diversos festivales del mundo, su director callejea con una pequeña cámara al encuentro de un motivo o personaje para su próxima obra. Con forma de diario de viajes, Guest presenta los registros tomados por este cineasta. Bajo el trenzado aparentemente azaroso de cada uno de estos apuntes late una película; la situación, el conflicto, el personaje que debería gestarla. “Lo observado” se manifiesta como estadio primero, esencial e inagotable del cine. Guest participará en la sección Orizzonti del Festival de Venecia y en Toronto.

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LA NOCHE QUE NO ACABA
España
Dirección: Isaki Lacuesta

Como muchos actores, Ava Gardner odiaba ver sus películas. Decía que la mujer de la pantalla no era ella. Pero todas las películas cuentan dos relatos: el argumento y la historia de los cuerpos filmados. Esta película cuenta lo que sucedió entre dos imágenes: un primer plano de "Pandora" y un primer plano de "Harén", el primero y el último que Ava rodó en España. Seguramente, Ava pensaría que ninguna de esas dos mujeres se parecía en nada a ella misma.

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YVES SAINT LAURENT, L’AMOUR FOU
Francia
Dirección: Pierre Thoretton
Intérpretes: Pierre Bergé, Yves Saint Laurent

“Yves Saint Laurent nos ha dejado” dice el titular de periódico del 1 de junio, 2008. Pierre Bergé mira a las cámaras y contesta las preguntas sobre el gran modisto recién fallecido. Más que nada, este gran hombre fue su compañero de vida. Juntos, a base de rigor y pasión, cambiaron el mundo. Nuestro mundo, el mundo cotidiano de mujeres vestidas con cazadoras y pantalones, por fin al alcance de cualquiera, bajo el nombre de Rive Gauche. Pierre Bergé e Yves Saint Laurent: uno creó un imperio, el otro liberó a las mujeres. Y durante un periodo de cuarenta años, estos dos hombres construyeron una colección de arte sin igual. Los días 23, 24 y 25 de febrero de 2009, esta colección excepcional fue subastada en el Grand Palais. La subasta de su colección es el hilo narrador de la intensa y salvaje historia de amor y vida compartida por estos dos hombres fuera de lo común, Pierre Bergé e Yves Saint Laurent. Pierre Bergé cuenta su historia en entrevistas que se centran en obras de arte y momentos de la vida de la pareja. Presentada en Toronto 2010.

Cannes 2010: más vale tarde que nunca (parte 2)

Este otro video, también tomado en la recepción argentina, muestra a la pareja de Pablo Trapero y Martina Gusman mostrando la "edición especial" de una muy particular bebida argentina. Junto a ellos, los productores del filme (la gente de Patagonik y Agustina Llambí Campbell, de Matanza), además de otros notables personajes como el señor Pablo Udenio y la chica que está al lado suyo cuyo nombre ahora no puedo recordar...

Cannes 2010: "Carancho", de Pablo Trapero, supera los 95 mil espectadores

En su primer fin de semana, y según cifras provisorias de Ultracine, Carancho llevó 95.746 espectadores en 73 pantallas (siguieron creciendo a lo largo del fin de semana), ubicándose segunda detrás de Iron Man 2 y con el mejor promedio por pantalla del país. De cualquier manera, no sería extraño que, al seguir agregándose salas al conteo general, la cifra crezca y es probable que alcance o ronde los 100 mil espectadores. Un estreno más que exitoso. Y tras la media hora en la que anoche estuvo Ricardo Darín "departiendo" con Susana Gimenez en televisión (calculen, promedio, unas 7 millones de personas mirando el programa), todo indica que el ritmo va a seguir durante un buen tiempo. Y luego viene Cannes...

Cannes 2010: 67 mil espectadores para "Carancho", de Pablo Trapero

Carancho, la película de Pablo Trapero llegó a los 67 mil espectadores en 73 pantallas en sólo tres días y es probable que ronde los 100 mil cuando termine el domingo. Un notable arranque para la película de Trapero, que también ahora tiene el mejor promedio por pantalla del mercado superando a Pesadilla en la Calle Elm.

El Bonaerense, de 2002, es la película más taquillera de Trapero, con 216 mil espectadores, cifra que sin duda Carancho pasará para el fin de la semana que viene, más o menos en la fecha de la presentación del filme en Cannes, que será el lunes. Las cifras de taquilla de las anteriores películas de Trapero fueron: Mundo grúa (65 mil, en 1999), Familia rodante (53 mil, en 2004), Nacido y criado (24 mil, en 2006) y Leonera (130 mil, 2008)

Hablando de Cannes, a Carancho le tocó un día difícil de exhibición. Su función de prensa coincide con un pack que incluye las nuevas películas de Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jean-Luc Godard y Stephen Frears, lo cual sin duda hará que buena parte de la crítica allí reunida pase de largo la función de su filme. De cualquier manera está la proyección nocturna (a las 22) y la del día siguiente para que la recuperen.

"Carancho": 29.048 espectadores

Dos días y la película de Pablo Trapero avanza bastante bien en la taquilla: 9.200 el primer día, casi 20 mil el segundo y ahora a esperar los dos "días grandes", sábado y domingo, a ver si supera los 65 mil (seguro que los superará), que daría un promedio más que aceptable para las 65 pantallas en las que se exhibe. Si la información de Ultracine es correcta, la película pasó de 55 pantallas el jueves a 65 el viernes, lo cual demuestra que en varios cines decidieron darla en una sala más seguramente debido al buen rendimiento que tenía. No tiene el mejor promedio de la cartelera (pierde por poco con "Pesadilla en la Calle Elm", que va tercera), pero pronto lo tendrá porque las películas de terror suelen caerse más rapidamente que las demás.

Fuerte arranque de "Carancho"

Carancho arrancó con 9.268 espectadores en 55 salas durante el día de ayer, jueves, quedando segunda en el día, apenas por debajo de Iron Man 2, que llevó 11.774. Es un excelente promedio por pantalla y podría augurar un fin de semana entre 70 y 100 mil espectadores, dependiendo del "boca en boca", todas cifras que serían muy buenas. De cualquier manera, hay que tener en cuenta que la película salió con una movida publicitaria y mediática muy fuerte, lo que a veces augura muy fuertes primeros días, pero no asegura continuidad. El efecto publicitario, evidentemente, está logrado. Ahora falta ver qué pasa con la gente...

Cannes 2010: Crítica de "Carancho", de Pablo Trapero (Clarín)

Diego Lerer

A los golpes, así anda Sosa. Intentando ser domesticado a las piñas, como buen antihéroe de todo policial. Arranca, nomás, siendo pateado en algún descampado. Y volverá, varias veces, a acumular cortes y heridas en su rostro. Pero parece que el hombre se alimenta de esos golpes, que lo ponen en funcionamiento. Con la sangre todavía fresca sobre el rostro, Sosa (Ricardo Darín) se presenta en un accidente de autos dispuesto a colaborar con los médicos de emergencia. ¿Qué hace allí? ¿Cómo llegó antes que ellos?

El filme define su profesión como la de "carancho", un ave de rapiña, carroñera: un abogado que, más que perseguir ambulancias, recibe el dato de los accidentes -gracias a una serie de contactos- y llega al lugar antes que todos para ofrecer sus servicios legales a nombre de una fundación. El "paquete" funciona: de lo que paga el seguro, la víctima cobra una pequeña parte, los abogados una mayor y habrá comisión para policías y paramédicos. "A un tipo que no tiene nada y aparece tirado debajo de un puente a las tres de la mañana, lo mejor que le puede pasar es encontrarse a un tipo como Sosa", se justifica Pico, conductor de la ambulancia.

En la ambulancia viaja Luján (Martina Gusman), una joven médica que hace guardias en un hospital de San Justo. En ese choque conoce a Sosa y descubrirá a qué se dedica. Lo verá varias otras veces -Sosa tiene la particularidad de siempre estar rondando, como buen carancho, a la caza de su presa- y tendrán una rara cita. Rara porque funciona en los horarios y las condiciones que la poco glamorosa profesión de ambos requiere.

Claro que, de allí en más, todo se complicará. Luján descubrirá que el "carancheo" de Sosa no es tan simple como parece, él se enredará en problemas con su jefe en la Fundación y la relación se quebrará. Todo lo que hará falta para reunirlos, como reza la tradición del cine negro, es un último trabajito para poder escapar de ese mundo sin salida. Y allí empezará, casi, otra película, una en la que el dinero, las armas y las persecuciones irán acelerando el pulso de los protagonistas y de los espectadores.

En Carancho, como en El Bonaerense -la película de Trapero a la que más se asemeja-, el universo que rodea a los personajes es hostil, oscuro, por momentos desesperante. El punto de vista del espectador es el de Luján: es a través de ella que descubrimos las capas de corrupción, el negocio que se maneja detrás de los accidentes de tránsito, los lazos que unen a los distintos "jugadores".

Si bien ya ha empezado a conocer algunos vicios de su profesión, Luján todavía trata de hacer lo correcto, cree en los que la rodean y no dejará de hacerlo hasta que la realidad le pruebe lo contrario.

Sosa es diferente. Es un viejo zorro, un hombre que conoce su territorio y que quiere salir de allí antes de que sea demasiado tarde. Ella es su ángel, la chica que conquista y la que le permite ilusionarse con una vida fuera del infierno.

Policial negro, puro y duro, que no da respiro al espectador, Carancho nos mete en una situación que imaginamos en extremo realista pero la tiñe de la lógica y los condimentos del género, como una versión sucia de los policiales norteamericanos de los '70. Es una película "scorseseana" (de Calles salvajes a Vidas al límite, pasando por Taxi Driver) en su combinación de tradición y modernidad, de estilización de guión (las "reglas" del género) y de observación del mundo (neorrealismos varios).

Carancho es una película tan real como brutal, tan cercana como lejana (eso pasa acá, todos los días, muy cerca de la casa de cada espectador, pero parece un mundo aparte), tan cotidiana como sórdida. En ella Trapero demuestra, también, una solidez narrativa más clásica y detalles de puesta en escena (prestar atención a la cantidad de asombrosos planos secuencia) notables.

Fatalista, sangrienta, impiadosa (acaso demasiado) y violenta, Carancho se suma a la tradición de los policiales que viene haciendo Ricardo Darín. Y tal vez este sea el más duro de todos ellos, más aún que El aura y ni hablar de El secreto de sus ojos. Su cara ya tiene pegado ese agotamiento ante el mundo: es como si el actor y el personaje estuvieran pidiendo por alguien que los saque de allí, urgentemente. Y para eso deberá estar Luján, personaje en el que Gusman vuelve a lucirse como una de las mejores actrices del cine argentino, encontrando esa difícil mezcla entre inocencia y dureza, simpatía y temeridad.

Carancho no es una película fácil de ver ni todas las elecciones de Trapero son acertadas -el final generará algún que otro debate-, pero se trata sin dudas de un filme, y de un realizador, que no hace concesiones. Tener una estrella taquillera, mayor presupuesto y una distribuidora grande no le torcieron el pulso. Al contrario: Carancho es la película de alguien seguro de lo que hace y convencido de su recorrido en el mundo del cine.«


Carancho

Drama (Argentina, 2010) 105' SAM 16 Direccion Pablo Trapero interpretes Ricardo Darín, Martina Gusman salas Abasto, Cinemark, Atlas Santa Fe

Muy buena

"Carancho": Entrevista a Pablo Trapero, Ricardo Darín y Martina Gusman (Clarín)

Link

Cannes 2010: Fotos de "Carancho", de Pablo Trapero

Cannes: "Carancho", de Pablo Trapero, a UN CERTAIN REGARD

Agregados a Cannes

- CHONGQING BLUES, by the Chinese film director Wang Xiaoshuaï and TENDER SON - THE FRANKENSTEIN PROJECT, directed by Kornél Mondruczó (Hungary) are the last two titles to complete the Competition of the Official Selection, which will present 18 films competing for the Palme d’Or.

- CARANCHO, by Argentinian film director Pablo Trapero and I WISH I KNEW by Jia Zhang Ke (China) in Un Certain Regard.

- THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF NICOLAE CEAUSESCU, directed by the Romanian Andrei Ujică, Out of Competition.

- CARLOS, by French film director Olivier ASSAYAS, which will be presented Out of Competition.

- COUNTDOWN TO ZERO, directed by Lucy Walker (United States), Special Screening.

- 5XFAVELA, directed by Carlos Diegues and made up of five short films by Brazilian film directors Manaira CARNEIRO, Wagner NOVAIS, Rodrigo FELHA, Cacau AMARAL, Luciano VIDIGAL, Cadu BARCELOS, Luciana BEZERRA, which will be presented in the Special Screening.

The Jury of the 63rd edition of the Festival de Cannes is now completed by Alexandre Desplat, the French composer.

"Carancho", de Pablo Trapero (fotos)

Se estrena en la Argentina el 6 de mayo.

"Carancho", de Pablo Trapero (trailer)

"Carancho", de Pablo Trapero (afiche)

Candidatos a Cannes (Screen)

Link

Cannes tips (Screen)

By Fionnuala Halligan

We’ve had a look at Dieter Kosslick’s shopping list for the Berlinale (see below post), but there are also some early indicators of what Thierry Fremaux and Gilles Jacob are looking at over in Cannes.

Early days yet, of course – Brilliante Mendoza could complete at least three features in the time between now and May 12, when the festival kicks off. Things can change.

Headliners

Sexy art films abound next May – how about this for a Croisette sampler:

- Cannes is an event, and so is a Terrence Malick film: Brad Pitt and Sean Penn star in The Tree Of Life, Malick’s fifth film. The timing could be right, but Malick’s release dates tend to come and go.

- Hereafter. Newly-appointed Commander of the French Legion of Honour Clint Eastwood cast French treasure Cecile de France in the lead for his supernatural thriller alongside Matt Damon (script by Peter Morgan), so why not?.

- Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu will certainly be ready with Biutiful, his long-awaited follow-up to Babel, which also premiered at Cannes. Javier Bardem stars in the Barcelona-shot, Spanish language production about a shady dealer who comes up against his childhood friend, now a policeman.

- 78-year-old Jean-Luc Godard, (an “enfant” by Manoel de Oliveira standards) has Socialism, described as “a symphony in three movements” and involving a cruise ship on the Mediterranean with Patti Smith and Alain Badiou. Wild Bunch is selling.

- The Rum Diary, Bruce Robinson’s (Withnail & I) adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s (long unpublished) 1950s-set novel about a freelance journalist writing for a paper in Puerto Rico. Johnny Depp stars – the combination is perfect for Cannes, which hosted the premiere of Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas all those years ago (1998 to be precise).

-Woody Allenis ecumenical with his festivals – Whatever Works went to Tribeca last year, Vicky Cristina Barcelonawent to Cannes in 2008. You Will Meet A TallDark Stranger, with Anthony Hopkins, Naomi Watts and Antonio Banderas, will be ready by May.

- Two years after Marie-Antoinette failed to captivate Cannes, Sofia Coppola is on more secure ground with Somewhere, a story about a Hollywood actor living in the Chateau Marmont who gets a sobering visit from his daughter. Stephen Dorff stars with Dakota Fanning in this Focus Features selection which may be ready by May.

-Lisa Cholodenko, whose High Art broke out at Cannes in 1998, may return with The Kids Are All Right starring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo and AnnetteBening, about two children of a lesbian couple who decide to track down their father.

I predict a riot

Certain titles have an eau de headline about them

- Ken Loach should be ready with Route Irish, about two security contractors working in Iraq, one of whom dies on “Route Irish”. The other decides to investigate. Post-Looking for Eric, 73-year-old Loach and his producer Rebecca O’Brien and writer Paul Laverty have been vocal in their assertion that festivals should not programme films supported by the state of Israel. Cannes should be a big test for the independently-financed Route Irish.

-Talking of Israel, Julian Schnabel should be ready with Miral, starring Freida Pinto as a Palestinian orphan who ends up in Hind Husseini’s (Hiam Abbas) orphanage in Jerusalem post-1948. Willem Dafoe co-stars.

- Gaumont pictures has one of the most controversial French titles to appear this year (or any): Roselyne Bosch’s TheRound Up (Le Rafle), a $26m feature about French collaboration during the war, namely aFrench police operation which rounded up 13,000 Jews on the night of July 16, 1942. Melanie Laurent and Jean Renostar. As this currently is slated for a March release, there’s a possiblilty it could hit an earlier festival first.

Guess who’s coming to Hollywood?

Looking solely at release schedules, Robin Hood is Ridley Scott’s take on the bandit of Nottingham Forest, with Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett in the main roles (medieval mortality rates, however, might suggest that the real Robin and Marian wouldn’t make it as far as Russell or Cate). US release date: May 14. Iron Man 2; Wall Street 2; Sex and the City 2 are also May titles.

We don’t know. Nobody knows, as they say. Anything.

World music

Europe:

- Early word is strong on Thomas Vinterberg’s drama Submarino, about two brothers who can’t get a break in life. This is slated for a February release in Denmark, so could get an earlier festival.

- Seven years after he won the Golden Lion for his directorial debut The Magdalene Sisters, Peter Mullan is back in the director’s chair with Neds, shot in Glasgow and ready in time for Cannes, apparently. Wild Bunch is selling.

- Mike Leigh’s Untitled 2010 stars Jim Broadbent, Lesley Manville and Ruth Sheen.

- Abbas Kiarostami’s The Certified Copy, stars Juliette Binoche in an Italian-set story penned by the Iranian director about an English author who meets a French lady on a book-signing tour.

-Guillame Canet has Les Petits Mouchoirs, starring Marion Cotillard, Francois Cluzet and Benoit Magimel in his directorial follow-up toTell No One. This is set on the beaches of Cap Ferret and is about a group of people who holiday together every summer.

Nikita Mikhalkov’sExodus – The Fortress (aka Burnt By The Sun 2),also from Wild Bunch, picks up the story of General Kotov (Mikhalkov) and his family five years after the events portrayed in Oscar-winner Burnt By The Sun – which premiered at Cannes.

There’s a question mark over whether Nanni Moretti’s comedy Habemus Papum might be ready in time; should it be, he’s a Cannes favourite and the subject matter – a newly elected pope on a psychiatrist’s couch – has headline potential.

Andy De Emmony follows up his hit East is EastwithWest Is West for BBC Films with Jimi Mistry and Om Puri reprising their roles in an update with the Manchester-based Khan family, set in 1974.

Hungary’s Bela Tarr may haveThe Turin Horse ready and up for consideration.

Asia-Pacific

Leaving the deeply troubled I Come With The Rain behind him, Tran Anh Hung should be back in better shape with the much anticipated Norwegian Wood, with Rinko Kikuchi and Kenichi Maysuyama. Fortissimo is selling.

Cometh the Cannes, cometh the Johnnie To, who will certainly have Death of a Hostage (Si piu) ready for Media Asia, with Lau Ching-wan as a hitman hired to kill the kidnappers of a tycoon’s daughter.

Korea’s Lee Chang-dong (Secret Sunshine) should be ready with Poetry, starring 60s legend Yoon Hee-jeong

Takashi Miikecertainly will be ready with 13 Assassins, an exciting project which HanWay films is handling about a group of ronin who come together for a suicide mission to do away with an evil lord

Im Sang-soo (The President’s Last Bang) has The Housemaid, a story about a man whose affair with his servant turns very, very dark.

South America

Argentina’s Pablo Trapero (Leonera) could be ready with Carancho, currently filming and starring Ricardo Darin as an ambulance-chasing lawyer. Martina Gusman co-stars; Korea’s Finecut is selling.

Toon town

In the animated sector, The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec would bring its director/writer Luc Besson back to Cannes and features the voice talents of Mathieu Amalric and Louise Bourgoin.

'Lion's Den' team rejoins for 'Carancho' (The Hollywood Reporter)

HONG KONG – The team behind last year's Cannes competition entry "Lion's Den" has reunited for new AFM film "Carancho."

The picture, about an ambulance-chasing lawyer who gets into trouble way out of his depth, is again a collaboration between writer-director Pablo Trapero, actress Martina Gusman, Argentinian producers Matanza Cine, Patagonik Film Group and South Korea's Finecut. French distributor Ad Vitam also returns as investor and local distributor. Finecut will handle world rights sales outside Latin America and France.

Production is now under way in Buenos Aires, with Ricardo Darin ("Son of the Bride," "Nine Queens") as the sleazeball lawyer. Delivery is set for early summer 2010.

"This film is a classic 'film noir, like those of the 1940s and 1950s, where the police plot quietly became a portrait of a complicated social fabric," said Trapero. "It is also the description of the privacy of characters trying to survive in an unstable world, where a fact that seems minor can trigger a series of fatalities. It is, in its own way, the desperate love story between a man and a woman, immersed in a market where disgrace is the currency.

"Leonera", de Pablo Trapero (The New York Times review)

By STEPHEN HOLDEN

Published: July 3, 2009

Much of “Lion’s Den,” the Argentine director Pablo Trapero’s sprawling, unpredictable drama about a woman who gives birth in prison while awaiting trial for murder, was filmed inside maximum-security lockups in the province of Buenos Aires using real inmates and staff members as extras. Let me emphasize, however, that “Lion’s Den” repeatedly confounds expectations about its being a typical women’s prison movie fraught with the usual overtones of lesbian sadism and caged-heat prurience.

One of the more admired films at last year’s Cannes International Film Festival, “Lion’s Den” is neither an exposé of harsh prison conditions nor a weepy melodrama about a wrongly accused innocent redeemed by last-minute revelations of the truth. When first seen, the heroine, Julia Zarate (Martina Gusman, the director’s wife), appears to be a sullen, bleached-blond sybarite who awakens fully clothed one morning in a state of shock, covered with blood, and her apartment trashed.

After showering quickly she takes the train to work. It is only upon returning that she discovers the body of her live-in boyfriend, Nahuel, killed with a knife, and the wounded Ramiro (Rodrigo Santoro), Nahuel’s boyfriend, whom she later says Nahuel brought to live with them. No sooner has Julia taken in the carnage than the police burst in and arrest her on suspicion of murder. Examined in prison, she is found to be pregnant but can’t say for sure which one is the father, although she guesses it is Nahuel.

If “Lion’s Den” were a Hollywood film, the identity of the father of her baby, Tomás, would be determined, and flashbacks would reveal exactly what happened on a night of violence that Julia insists she can hardly recall. (Ramiro, who recovers from his knife wounds, gives an account that contradicts her incomplete, carefully rehearsed story and drives her ballistic with rage at his lies.)

Instead of raking over the past, the movie observes Julia’s personal growth during several years spent in a maternity cellblock. From a smoldering antisocial depressive she evolves into a popular, defiant inmate for whom motherhood gives purpose to a previously aimless existence.

Under Argentine law, according to the film, a child born in prison is taken at the age of 4 from his mother and placed either with a relative or the court. As the deadline approaches, Julia grows increasingly determined to keep Tomás.

Her mother, Sofia (Elli Medeiros), who has lived in France for the last 13 years, returns to Argentina. At first her appearance is a godsend. She brings supplies to Julia and her friends. But when Sofia contrives to assume custody of Tomás, Julia explodes and instigates what threatens to be a full-scale riot.

There are moments when Ms. Gusman, who physically resembles a less perfect Angelina Jolie, recalls Ms. Jolie’s character in “Changeling,” a woman who endures a nightmarish confinement in a mental ward. But Julia is not a fixed being like Ms. Jolie’s impossibly noble persecuted heroine.

For all its noise and mess, the maternity cellblock, strewn with toys and children’s bric-a-brac, is not a hellhole. In prison Julia bonds and has an affair with Marta (Laura García), a lean, craggy-faced mother of two who shows Julia the ropes and even after leaving prison continues to help her.

“Lion’s Den” cracks a smile in a scene scored to a pop tune in which a procession of mothers pushing strollers bring their children to a prison kindergarten. In another scene Tomás is shown climbing the prison bars like a jungle gym. Such lighthearted moments echo the antic spirit of Mr. Trapero’s best-known film, the wonderful 2004 comedy “Rolling Family,” about a clan’s road trip in a broken-down camper from Buenos Aires to a wedding in a town near the Brazilian border.

Although it is not a comedy, “Lion’s Den” is suffused with sense of life lived in the present. Even the grimmest moments are not exploited to instill fear and loathing. Once Julia accepts the reality of being in prison, the movie momentarily forgets its sense of time, and mother and child fare as best they can under trying circumstances.

LION’S DEN

Opens on Friday in Manhattan.

Directed by Pablo Trapero; written by Alejandro Fadel, Martín Mauregui, Sanitago Mitre and Mr. Trapero; director of photography, Guillermo Nieto; edited by Ezequiel Borovinsky and Mr. Trapero; art director, Coca Oderigo; produced by Mr. Trapero and Youngjoo Suh; released by Strand Releasing. At the IFC Center, 323 Avenue of the Americas, at Third Street, Greenwich Village. In Spanish, with English subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 53 minutes. This film is not rated.

WITH: Martina Gusman (Julia), Elli Medeiros (Sofia), Rodrigo Santoro (Ramiro) and Laura García (Marta).

"Leonera", de Pablo Trapero (Village Voice review)

By Aaron Hillls

Pablo Trapero's unpretentious prison drama wasn't exceptional enough to win the Palme d'Or at last year's Cannes, but what's downright neglectful is that his star/producer/wife, Martina Gusman, didn't skulk away with a Best Actress prize. Entering catatonic and submissive (and actually preggers in real life), the Argentinean beauty boldly transforms as she's both hardened and softened over a few years of jail time. She's a jaw-droppingly credible presence as the anguished mommy-to-be Julia, discovered by police alongside the bloody remains of her baby-daddy and his lover. Sent to the slammer, though one less scary than the hellhole in Carandiru as it's populated by stroller mommies, Julia gives birth and is forced to raise her son under lockdown—clearly not ideal conditions for a growing kid. This bizarrely dreary milieu is unlike any other woman-behind-bars movie (Pam Grier completists might contest): Amid the hair-pulling tussles in the shower, fiery riots, and other genre clichés, there are Lamaze classes and kindergarten. With a lightly expressive touch, Trapero opens our eyes, but not wide enough to take in anything fresh or profound about the setting's psychological and sociological complexities. Once the film devolves into a drag-down fight for custody with Julia's mother, only Gusman's nuance saves us from a script that seems geared more toward screeching overacting.