Man Who Sold the World
Imad & Swel Noury | Morocco | 2009
108 min

Man Who Sold the World is based on “A Faint Heart” a short story by the granddaddy of existentialism Fyodor Dostoevsky; it is the second feature film from Moroccan brother-duo Imad and Swel Noury, who probably grew up on Godard instead of Big Bird from Sesame Street, played with Taschen art books instead of crayons and favored punk rock over Twinkle Twinkle Little Stars. (Bowie’s song Man Who Sold the World also becomes the film’s title.) In fact, it is such a labor of love that the filmmakers’ own mother Pilar Cazorla had to assume the sole duty of producer, allowing the young directors carte blanche in self-indulgence. Then why blame the Brothers Noury when they spare no expense in creating a very personal vision of style and excess? continue reading »»

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2009
Daily Festival Report: 16th December 2009 (Day #7)

Many movies at the Dubai International Film Festival had a Q&A session after the screening. Of the three movies I managed to watch on the final day of the festival, the last two colourful post-screening Q&As that added value to the experience. This was possibly the best facet of the festival, apart from bringing us movies that we would not otherwise have had the opportunity to be discovered.

After the Downfall (Apres La Chute)
Hiner Saleem | France | 2009
63 mins

The title of this movie refers to the fall of Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi regime. The movie takes place in the apartment of a Kurdish man in France, celebrating the downfall with fellow Kurdish friends, while live televised news is projected on one of the walls. The time-line of the movie is two-fold: the entire story takes place on the same day as the celebration continues in the apartment, while the projected news-footage spans months as it goes from the US invasion of Iraq, their open-arm welcome by the Iraqis and eventually to the resistance and civil unrest the US occupation caused. Although this is a smart idea, and would surely have looked appealing on paper, the pull-off is dismal. Furthermore, the movie’s treatment is spineless: the rift between the characters at the party (due to their racial differences: Kurds vs. Shiites vs. Sunnis) is touched upon with kid gloves, and never properly explored or exploited. Instead, the director populates the movie with vulgar sensationalism of graphic news footage (real beheadings, etc) and needless nudity.

The Barons (Les Barons)
Nabil Ben Yadir | Belgium | 2009
106 mins

Set in a working class neighbourhood of Brussels, The Barons is the story of four young friends, nicknamed The Barons, who live a simple and lethargic life. Having no ambition in life, they intend to laze away, philosophising life. Except one of them, who dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian. The movie starts of as a delightful comedy, mixing quirky and bizarre humour with the narrative (breaking the fourth-wall, literally walking into the flashback, etc). But it steadily shifts spectrum, ending as a conventional drama. This could be interpreted as the characters growing up over the course of the movie and taking life more seriously, but it fails to resonate. Eventually, perhaps an ideal flight movie, The Barons has not much to take away, but it could take away your time quite effortlessly.

Little Soldier (Lille Soldat)
Annette L. Olesen| Denmark | 2008
101 mins

Little Soldier reminds me of El Custodio, the 2006 Argentinian movie. Quite similar in mood and treatment, Little Soldier is a restrained drama about Lotte, an ex-army soldier, coping with a distorted life. Brought up by her grand-parents after her mother’s death early in her life, Lotte finds it difficult to connect or communicate with her father. Taking up job as a driver for his prostitution ring, she eventually empathizes with her father’s Nigerian hooker girlfriend, taking it upon herself to ‘rescue’ her. Trine Dyrholm, playing Lotte, turns in a very restrained performance, letting her eyes and masculine-physicality evocate the character’s state of mind. Very well shot and presented, Little Soldier makes for a captivating watch.

And so it ends. As the curtains on the 2009 Dubai International Film Festival are drawn, looking back at the past week generates a smile: I was not sure about the movie selection this year before the start, but I am now glad to say that the festival proved to be quite fertile! For me: 7 Days, 5 shorts, 22 features, 1 documentary. However, all is not over yet. Expect an Afterword soon!

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2009
Daily Festival Report: 15th December 2009 (Day #6)

What a day of extremes! I watched four movies, none of which were in the middle-ground.  Keep reading for the low-down.

At The End Of Daybreak (Sham Moh)
Yuhang Ho | Malaysia/Hong Kong/South Korea | 2009
94 mins

This confused movie sets up an interesting enough premise, but then forgets who it is about. The narrative follows one character, then without rhyme or reason, shifts to another one, and then similarly to a third character. This could have been a good technique, but the way the movie progresses, it comes across as if the character in-focus becomes too boring, and hence the need to focus on someone else. Eventually, ends up being pointless. continue reading »»

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2009
Daily Festival Report: 13th December 2009 (Day #4)

So was it a close competition? Not in the least. Saw Earth’s Women, Mother, Moon, Farewell Gary. Read on to know which one triumphed over the others and which one particular movie made me fall asleep!

Earth’s Women (Ddag-ui Yeo-ja)
Woo-jung Kwon | South Korea | 2009
95 mins

In the closing narration of this documentary, the director makes a statement where the three farmer-women, subjects of the film, wonder why they are being filmed since they are not special in any way. The director then, in her narration, agrees that they are not special at all. Then why indeed was this movie made? Even at 95 minutes, it would have felt twice that duration if only I could keep myself awake to watch it all. continue reading »»

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2009
Daily Festival Report: 12th December 2009 (Day #3)

I did not end up watching four movies on the third day of DIFF 2009 as planned. But the quality of the three that I did watch (Well Done, Abba; Amreeka; The Message) has more than compensated for this small personal tragedy. This year is indeed turning out to be a surprise. Seems like where Hollywood lacked in 2009, independent cinema has made up for.

Well Done, Abba
Shyam Benegal | India | 2009
135 mins

Shyam Benegal, a celebrated director of the revolutionary “parallel cinema” movement of 70s India, moves a step-down with his latest feature, Well Done Abba, a satire based on the corruption that permeates India’s government schemes for the poor. Even so, this mediocre effort by Benegal’s standards leaves its mark. Abba (an over-acting Boman Iran getting his Hyderabadi accent way off-mark) faces corrupt officials at every step of the way when he tries to avail of a government scheme that finances the building of wells in a village. Each man wants his cut, eventually leaving Abba with no money, no well and documents saying all was done. Not to be victimized, Abba and his daughter (Minissha Lamba) decide to play the system instead. They file a report at the police station for a stolen well, presenting all documents to prove they officially had one. As departments collide, pandemonium ensues. Well Done, Abba was made with one purpose in mind: to use the mass-media of cinema to make a statement on the socio-economic condition of present-day India. Within that context, the movie does and will serve its purpose. But to present it to an audience not meant for it or to appraise it purely on cinematic terms not only diminishes the necessity of the movie, but also brings the tag of mediocrity to Benegal. The director may not be too bothered though, he is probably deep into composing his next socio-political statement. continue reading »»

Shariq Madani at DIFF 2009
Daily Festival Report: 11th December 2009 (Day #2)

Three movies, three genres, three varying levels of quality: from Korea to Japan to Sweden; from a personal story to a mythical epic to a post-apocalyptic animated. As my oft-repeated slogan de troika goes, the day included the good, the bad and the weird (but not necessarily in that order!). Here’s the doozy:

My Dear Enemy (Meotjin Haru)
Yoon-ki Lee | South Korea | 2008
123 mins

My Dear Enemy commits one of the greatest sins a movie can commit — it gets boring. A simple enough premise could well have lead to a useful exploration of the film’s two main characters’ interplay and psyche; it could also have been a humorous look into the situations they get into. The film does neither. The first 15 minutes of My Dear Enemy tell us almost everything we need to know about these people. Then from there on it out, it just allows time to tick on, burdening us with a painfully shallow female lead. It could have been a wonderful short. But it ends up being a five-course meal of biscuits only! continue reading »»

City of Life
Ali F. Mostafa | UAE | 2009
97 min

City of Life will change the way you think about Emirati filmmaking — it is co-written and directed by Ali F. Mostafa who, with this film, vigorously attempts to shatter preconceived notions about making movies in the United Arab Emirates. City of Life is especially designed to clear the haze surrounding big-budget film production in the city of Dubai and it sets a precedent: an Emirati filmmaker funded by Emirati coin has crafted smart, technically first-rate entertainment that can stand its own ground in the international marketplace. For a young country with a non-existent film industry, on this point alone, City of Life is an important accomplishment. continue reading »»

Born in America, she is an independent filmmaker whose parents are from Palestine and Jordan. Cherien Dabis’ debut film Amreeka is a Dubai Film Connection project that went on to win the FIPRESCI award at the Cannes Director’s Fortnight, as well receiving great acclaim at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Amreeka is being distributed by National Geographic Entertainment (via an arrangement with Imagenation Abu Dhabi). Even in limited release, it played to packed theaters across the United States and will be competing in the Muhr Arab Awards at the 2009 Dubai International Film Festival (screening times: Dec 12, at 10pm and Dec 15, at 2.15pm). In this open letter, Cherien Dabis talks about the immigrant experience in America: growing up as Arabs in a quaint little town in Omaha, Nebraska, and how that made her want to become a filmmaker:

Amreeka
by writer/director Cherien Dabis

It’s no wonder that Americans can relate to the universal immigrant themes in Amreeka. America is a country of immigrants after all, some who arrived centuries ago, others who are arriving as you read this. But despite where they came from and when they arrived, they all seem to understand what it means to struggle. And perhaps it’s precisely because they have their own coming-to-America stories that they’re inspired to ask me how autobiographical Amreeka is. The question usually goes something like this: “The story feels so personal. What inspired it? Is it autobiographical at all?” It’s a double question really, two questions that go hand-in-hand. And in order to best answer it, I’ll tell you my story. continue reading »»