only lovers left alive

116 Pages·031.18 MB·English

MARCH 2014 VOLUME 24 ISSUE 3
THE INTERNATIONAL FILM MAGAZINE
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TILDA SWINTON IN JIM JARMUSCH’S
ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE

PLUS
LARS VON TRIER’S ‘NYMPH( )MANIACC’’ DDEERREEKK JARMAN ‘STRANGER BY THE LAKE’
WES ANDERSON ON ‘THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL’ CLAIRE DENIS ON ‘BASTARDS’

Contents March 2014
22
FEATURES
22
Thestoryof()
LarsvonTrier’sNymph()maniacchannels
theMarquisdeSadeinacomplexodyssey
ofsexualdesire.Butisitscentralcharacter
anymorethananemptyvesselforthe
directortooffloadhisoftenprovocative
ideasaboutwomen?ByNickJames
28
Deadcalm
FrenchfilmmakerAlainGuiraudie
hasrevampedthesulliedreputation
oferoticthrillerswithStrangerbythe
Lake,atensetaleofobsessionthatboasts
oneofthemostmemorablescreen
murdersinyears.ByCatherineBray
36
Intruderinthedust
TedKotcheff’scultclassicWakeinFright
isabrutalexplorationofmasculinity
30
andviolenceintheAustralianoutback.
HetalkstoClareStewartabout
bringingitbackforanewgeneration
TheAnderson touch
ThespiritofErnstLubitschlivesoninWesAnderson’sThe 40
Englishmagus:
GrandBudapestHotel,ascrewballsetoverseveraldecadesina
themanyfacesofDerekJarman
fictionalEasternEuropeancountry.HetalkstoIsabelStevens Partpunkprophet,partEnglish
traditionalist,Jarmanwasamanwhose
REGULARS
occultinterestssatsidebysidewithan
5 EditorialActors’ark 19 JustinJohnsononchangesattheBBFC earthypoliticalengagement.Twenty
yearsafterhisdeath,wereappraise
Rushes Festivals hislegacy.ByWilliamFowler
6 SimonFowleronthefilmsofChina’s 20 EricKohnonthehitsandmisses
box-officeking,FengXiaogang atthisyear’sSundance 48
8 ObjectLesson:HannahMcGillon 21 EdwardLawrensonreports Darkmatters
motorscootersinthemovies fromthisyear’sRotterdam ClaireDenis’slatestfilm,Bastards,is
8 TheFiveKey...:filmposterscandals aharrowingjourneyintotheheartof
10 FirstSight:SamDaviestalksto WideAngle darkness.ShetalkstoNickRoddick
TerenceNance,directorandstarof 64 OlafMölleronthelittle-seen
AnOversimplificationofHerBeauty filmsofGonzaloGarcíaPelayo 50
13 Dispatches:MarkCousinsonsteps 66 Soundings:DanielBarrowon THES&SINTERVIEW:JimJarmusch
andstumblesinthecreativeprocess DerekJarman’suseofmusic NickPinkertontalkstotheAmerican
67 PrimalScreen:BryonyDixonreportson directoraboutthejoysofmusic,books
TheIndustry aprogrammeofsilent-eracolourfilms andtravelling–andabouthislatestfilm,
14 DevelopmentTale: 68 MelissaGronlundexaminesthe OnlyLoversLeftAlive,acharacteristically
CharlesGantonStarredUp beguilinginstallationsofTurner unconventionaltakeonthevampire
15 TheNumbers:CharlesGanton PrizewinnerLaureProuvost myth,starringTomHiddlestonand
thisyear’sOscarhopefuls TildaSwinton
16 Brewster:BenRobertsonhow 111Letters
theUKfilmindustryneedsa 58
benefactorwithdeeppockets Endings Obituaries
19 Profile:GeoffreyMacnabtalksto 112PasqualeIannoneontheliberating BobMastrangelo’ssurveyofthefilmgreats
NiraPark,producerofCubanFury finaletoClaireDenis’sBeauTravail andlesser-knownswholeftusduring2013
March2014|Sight&Sound|1

Contents Reviews
(incorporatingMonthlyFilmBulletin)
PublishedmonthlybytheBFI
Editorialenquiries
21StephenStreetLondonW1T1LN
t:02072551444
f:02075805830 FILMSOFTHEMONTH HOMECINEMA
w:bfi.org.uk/sightandsound 70 Strangerbythe 96 BattleforMusic,Films
e:S&S@bfi.org.uk
Lake/L’Inconnudulac byJamesBenning,Betty
Socialmedia
f:facebook.com/SightSoundmag 72 Bastards/LesSalauds Blue,Ilbidone,BigTrouble
t:twitter.com/SightSoundmag 74 AnOversimplification inLittleChina,Filmsby
Subscriptions ofHerBeauty CharlesChaplin,Cinerama
t:02089557070
Travelogues,TheEpicof
e:sightandsound@
alliance-media.co.uk FILMS Everest,EyesWithouta
Volume24Issue3(NS) 78 BountyKiller Face,TheOther,Perestroika/
74
ISSN0037-4806USPS496-040 78 CubanFury PerestroikaReconstructed,
CONTRIBUTORS 79 Devil’sDue TheStuartHallProject,
DanielBarrowisafreelancecritic 79 Fonzy LaViedeBohème,The
CatherineBrayiseditor 80 47Ronin YearoftheCannibals
ofFilm4.com 81 TheGrandBudapestHotel DVDfeatures
AshleyClarkisafreelance 82 GrudgeMatch 94 KimNewmanrevisits
journalistandfilmprogrammer
82 TheHarryHillMovie SidneyLumet’sPacino-
SamDaviesisafreelancecritic
SimonFowlerisacriticspecialising 83 I,Frankenstein starringcopdramaSerpico
inAsiancinema,andtheauthor 83 JackRyan:ShadowRecruit Television
of101EssentialChineseMovies 84 LoveIsintheAir/ 97 Civvies,Elementary–
MelissaGronlundisthe
Amour&turbulences Season1,TheTunnel
editorofAfterall
PhilipHorneisaprofessorof 86 Nymph()maniacVolume1 LostandFound 78
EnglishatUCL.Heisco-editorof 87 Nymph()maniacVolume2 100 PhilipHorneonGavin
ThoroldDickinson:aWorldofFilm 88 1/1:LifeontheLimit MillarandDennisPotter’s
PasqualeIannoneissenior
88 OnlyLoversLeftAlive magicalDreamchild
teachingfellowinfilmstudiesat
theUniversityofEdinburgh 89 ParanormalActivity:
EricKohnisthechieffilmcritic TheMarkedOnes
andaseniorwriteratIndiewire 90 RideAlong BOOKS
EdwardLawrensonisa
90 TheSquare/AlMidan 104 JohnWyverona
freelancecriticandfilmmaker
GeoffreyMacnabisacritic 91 Stalingrad fascinatingsocialhistory
andfilmjournalist 92 ThatAwkwardMoment ofBritishtelevision
BobMastrangeloisawriter, 93 Tim’sVermeer 105 PaulJulianSmithona
filmhistorianandnecrologist 93 WalkingwithDinosaurs studyofthegoldenage
HannahMcGillisafreelance 83
ofMexicancinema
writerandcritic
OlafMöllerisfromCologneand 106 BradStevensenjoysa
writesaboutandshowsfilms monographonMurnau’s
KimNewman’slatestnovelis classicNosferatu
AnnoDracula–JohnnyAlucard
106 SueVicereviewsa
NickPinkertonisafreelance
writerandfilmcritic groundbreakingstudy
NickRoddickistheauthorof ofSovietcinemaand
severalbooksoncinema theHolocaust
PaulJulianSmithisdistinguished
professorintheGraduateCenter,
CityUniversityofNewYork
BradStevensistheauthorof
AbelFerrara:TheMoralVision
ClareStewartisheadoffestivals
andcinemasattheBFI
BenWaltersisproducerofBURN:
MovingImagesbyCabaretArtists
JohnWyverisaproducerwith
Illuminationsandvisitingprofessor 93
attheUniversityofWestminster
COVER
TildaSwintoninOnlyLoversLeftAlive
And online this month
RetouchedbyDawkinsColour RachelBoyntonandBigMen|
NEXTISSUE straight-to-videoCoppolaandDePalma|Berlinaleblog,BAFTAand
onsale11March
Clermont-Ferrandfestivalshortsandmorebfi.org.uk/sightandsound
March2014|Sight&Sound|3

NEWSANDVIEWS
Rushes
INTHEFRAME
THE MAN WITH THE MIDAS TOUCH
Dramaoutofacrisis:FengXiaogang’sAftershockexplorestheawfuldilemmafacedbyamothertryingtorescuehertwinsaftertheTangshanearthquake
Lookbeyondthecommercial filmmakers–causedwavesatEuropeanfilm screeningattheBFISouthbankinFebruary,
festivalswith,respectively,RaisetheRedLantern it’satremendousopportunitytodiscover
successofhisfilmsandyou’ll
(1991),YellowEarth(1984)andTheHorseThief oneofChina’smosthighlyprizeddirectors.
findadirectoroftrueartistic (1986),itwasactuallyFeng’sworkthatforgedthe BorninBeijingin1958,Fengwas20when
meritinFengXiaogang greatestconnectionwithChineseaudiences. universitiesandcollegesreopenedafter10years
Oftenlabelleda‘populist’directorand oftheCulturalRevolutionandhewasable
pigeonholedbyunhelpfulcomparisonsin topasstheentranceexamtotheBeijingFilm
BySimonFowler theWesternpresswithStevenSpielberg Academy.ButsadlyforFeng,hissingle-parent
Fewdirectorsaliveunderstandthehopes, (boththeirfilmsmakemoney,yousee), familywasunabletoaffordthefeesandhis
fearsanddesiresoftheChinesepopulation overthepastcoupleofdecadesFenghas inclusioninthelegendaryclassof1978(which
betterthanFengXiaogang.Whilehis createdabodyofgenre-defyingworkthat sawthelikesofZhangandChensettheworld
contemporariesZhangYimou,ChenKaige deservesattentiononitsmeritsratherthan alight)wasnottobe.Fenginsteadjoinedthe
andTianZhuangzhuang–whoformpart simplyfortheheftybox-officereceipts armyandworkedasasetdesignerforamilitary
oftheso-calledFifthGenerationofChinese itgenerates.Withaselectionofhisfilms artensembleinBeijing,beforemakinghisway
AVFestival GlasgowFilmFestival
Takingplacethroughout BookendedbyWes
MarchacrossNorth-East Anderson’s‘TheGrand
England,thiseditionof BudapestHotel’and
theever-imaginative JonathanGlazer’s‘Under
ONOUR biennialfestivaltakesas theSkin’,thetenth
RADAR itsfocusthethemeof editionofthefestival
‘extraction’.Highlights (20February–2March)
includetheindustrial promisesnumerous
filmsofWangBing, delights,amongthem
RachelBoynton’soil afocusonChile,and
industrydoc‘BigMen’ Hollywoodcinema
(right)andaweekend from1939(including
ofpost-colonialcinema. ‘Ninotchka’,right)
6|Sight&SoundMarch2014
ANATOMYOFAMOVIE
HER
intotelevisionandeventuallyscreenwriting. 22%HaroldandMaude(1971)
Likemostfilmmakersofhisgeneration
hopingtomakefilmsintheearly1990s,Feng 15%ElectricDreams(1984)
hadtobalancehisdesiretomakesociallyaware
filmswiththeincreasedcensorshipbroughtin
14%LarsandtheRealGirl(2007)
aftertheTiananmenSquaremassacreinJune
1989.AlthoughheearnedaGoldenRooster
12%BlackMirror:BeRightBack(2013)
nominationatChina’sfilmawardsforhis
screenplayforZhengXiaolong’sUnexpected
Passion(1991)–thetragicstoryofamanfalling 10%BlueValentine(2010)
inlovewithawomanwithleukaemia–his
clasheswithofficialcensorspushedhim 8%WeirdScience(1985)
towardsthepoliticallysafeterritoryofcomedy.
TheconceptofNewYearfilms(hesuipian) 8%2001:ASpaceOdyssey(1968)
hadbeenpresentinHongKongcinemasince
the50sand60s,andeventhencouldbetraced
5%AI:ArtificialIntelligence(2001)
backtoHollywood’spredilectionfortent-pole
releasesduringkeyholidays.Encouragedby
4%TheStepfordWives(1972)
HanSanping–directoroftheBeijingFilm
Studio–Fengmadehisfirsthesuipianwith
PartyA,PartyB(1997)andquicklyestablished 2%Colossus:
theconventionwithhisnexttwoChinese TheForbinProject(1969)
NewYearmoviesBeThereorBeSquare(1998)
and SorryBaby(1999).Withdialoguerichin
sarcastichumour,expressedinadistinctive
Beijingdrawl,thesefilmstooksubtleswipesat
pompousauthorityfigureswhileneverskirting
tooclosetosensitivematerial.Theloosetrilogy FengXiaogang
offilmsisalsonotablefortheappearanceof
Feng’smostconsistentcollaborator,GeYou. provinghisMidastouchattheboxoffice.
Withafaceanddeliverythatlend PerhapsthefilmthatbestexemplifiesFeng’s
themselvesequallywelltoplayingcomedy abilitytoexplorethestillsensitivewoundsof
QUOTEOFTHEMONTH
ordrama,heroorvillain,Gehasprovedthe recentChinesehistory–andthecharacteristics
BARBARASTANWYCK
perfectfitforFeng’soutput.Perhapshismost oftheChinesethemselves–isAftershock(2010).
criticallyacclaimedroleisastheTVhost SetintheimmediateaftermathoftheTangshan
caughtinawebofinfidelityinCellPhone earthquake,whichkilledapproximatelya
“Putmeinthelast15minutes
(2004).Highlightinghowtheubiquityof quarterofamillionpeoplein1976,thefilm
telecommunicationsareirreversiblychanging tellstheheartbreakingstoryofamotherwho ofapictureandIdon’tcare
humanrelationships,Feng’sdarkandengaging mustdecidewhichofhertwinstorescue whathappenedbefore.Idon’t
filmskilfullyquestionsChinesesociety’s fromtherubble.Withthe2008earthquake
evencareifIwasintherest
attitudetowardsextra-maritalaffairs. inSichuanstillfreshinthemind,Fengwas
Emboldenedbyhishugebox-officesuccess, abletofashionapictureofgreatemotional ofthedamnedthing–I’ll
Fengwasabletopushtheboundariesofthe sensitivityandimpact.Acclaimedbycritics,
takeitinthose15minutes”
subjectmatterofhisfilmswhilealsotesting AftershockeasilydemonstratesFeng’splace
hisvisualstyletothelimit.Assembly(2007) amonghispeerswhoaresooftenlaudedat
ARCHIVE(3)/KOBALCOLLECTION(1) wnmdabconeloaoempdtssoimsNacpdata-uaagisrotdoneiine,saoiioqknttounoeaifsesdlstiheswfswoirtemivsratbmerhipansalStocynttpehflyaeinCeesprelhlebabsaaireetinltnetriiewgsce1st’uves9eiciel4Swta,n0aabrabsvClpr.oliTooynfioglmhldliemtePymidrci–tauvolantiests fitChlihmeininfaes‘cuLsFiieonstgeilnthanevidnglbtaso2dlrXsawn2wita.aFeirIohoetoangabfulotalronurnidftmdageCmrs:tshyphSipieagenpartheewarBtscttoetebFoarleIffilyccdSalumos.oelyHmaueetretkahehCr.paib-hntrlaooitcnnnovoakginw’d,rtehuinsanutses
BFINATIONAL obRfaylsaaunnc(ch1e9st9thy8el)i.psBeeudrstvoainsoalaellnwacnaedy,sFt,heanengtdrmaegvaiencn,aoginnecsaetfioalgmain wbBeFittIhwS‘eAoeuCntehJnbutanunerkyanodfCOhcitnoebseer,Cailnseomaat’
ThatSinkingFeeling BorderlinesFilmFestival
BillForsythprefershisteenageheist Newfilmsfromestablished
debuttoitssuccessor‘Gregory’s directorsandlittle-known
Girl’,buthisauthenticdepiction voicesalikecanbefoundin32
of1980sGlasgowhaspreviously venuesacrossHerefordshire
onlybeenavailableintheUKon andShropshirefrom28
aDVDwithre-dubbedaccents. Februaryto6March.In
Theinventiveno-budgetcomedy additiontothematicstrands
(right)hasnowbeenremastered dedicatedtotheseaand
onDVDandBlu-rayandwillbe music,thefestivalcelebrates
releasedbyBFIFlipsideinthe FrenchCinemaandthe
mannerForsythintended(alongside workofJapanesefilmmaker
someofthedirector’sshorts,plus Kore-edaHirokazu,including
extras)on21April. ‘NobodyKnows’(right).
March2014|Sight&Sound|7
RUSHES OBJECTLESSON
ENGINE OF CHANGE
Themotorscootercame forthemasses.ButasItalyemergedfromthe ofliving,andinItalianself-presentationto
privationsofwarandenteredtheperiodof overseaseyes.RomanHoliday(1953),inwhich
torepresentworkingclass
itsso-called‘economicmiracle’–bolstered aVespascooterpilotedbyGregoryPeck’s
dreamsofescapeinthe bythesupportoftheUSA,forwhomitwas AmericanreporterwhisksAudreyHepburn’s
animportantnewally–theVespabecame Europeanprincessawayfromhersober
yearsafterWorldWarII
emblematicnotofrelieffrompoverty,butof duties,exemplifiesanew,tourist-friendly
new-foundculturalconfidenceandyouthful, viewofItaly:alandofsunandfreedomwhere
ByHannahMcGill carefreestyle.AsItaly’seconomyburgeoned responsibilitiesandreservecanbejettisoned.
Thequasi- anditsruralpoormovedenmasseintocities Ofcourse,noteveryonewasreadytohop
autobiographical totakeadvantageoftheimprovedconditions, onaVespaandcelebratetheshinynewItaly.
comedyDearDiary demandforcheap,mass-producedconsumer Amongthemostscathingdetractorsofthe
(1993)beginswitha goodsskyrocketed.Italywassoldabroad economicmiraclewasPierPaoloPasolini.To
sectioninwhichits asaholidaydestination,anditsstarletsto him,itsaccessibleconsumerismwascounter-
director/protagonist Americanaudiencesasembodimentsofaripe revolutionary,andmorallyruinoustothe
NanniMorettibuzzesaroundhishomecity, andrisquésensuality.Ifownershipofapush- socialclasshepreferredtoregardasinnocent
Rome,onaVespamotorscooter.Hischosenmode bikepromisedfreedomandself-respecttothe martyrs;italsodisproportionatelybenefitedthe
ofconveyanceisanappealinglyeccentricone, urbanpoorofVittorioDeSica’sBicycleThieves urbannorthofItalyovertheruralsouth,and
wellsuitedtothesolitaryroaming,contemplation (1948),withinafewyearsofthatfilm’srelease leftthosewhoselivesitdidnotimprovemore
ofarchitectureandimpromptupursuitofJennifer theVesparepresentedsomethingelse:not hopelessthaneverbefore.Moretti–alsoaleftist
Bealsthatheundertakesinthecourseofthefilm. industrybutleisure;notself-motivation,but suspiciousofempty‘progress’,alsonostalgic
Butthemotorscooter,intheItaliancontext, aplayfulindividualism;notsocialmobility, forItaly’s‘innocent’past–makesthefinalstop
alsobearsawidersignificance.Launchedin butanostensiblelevellingofopportunity. onhisVespatriptheplacewherePasoliniwas
1946,theVespawasthespeedyresultofits Neorealism,withitsemphasisuponthe murderedin1975,eitherbythelowlifeheso
manufacturer,Piaggio,movingoutofthe frankdepictionofeconomicinjustice,had romanticisedorthepoliticianshesodisdained.
aeronauticalindustryuponthecessation broughtItaliancinematoglobalattention; TheassociationoftheVespawithsocial
ofWorldWarII,andaddressinginsteadthe butthetimeoftheeconomicmiraclesaw aspirationandthepursuitofpleasureinforms
demandforalow-costmeansoftransport adramaticshiftinbothItalianstandards itsadaptationintheUnitedKingdomasafetish
objectofthelate1950sandearly1960smod
subculture.ColinMacInnes’snovelAbsolute
Beginners,publishedin1959,emphasisesthe
influenceofItalianstyle–Vespas,coffeebars,
sharplytailoredsuits–onitsyoungmod
cfTsatheatmaerrsdpaE1cledt9ed8irsi6sec,baOwipg’hCt-usiolcrenreetndheeinelnlaaatwdhnakedpwpPtauaattbrisdolyinncKeibtseysynsoJshufitoliitftesronoilfzle-n COLLECTION(1)
sintaMFtircoanraetcodRpyonadapdmraimsict’iswnQea,usmathduresoeupuhsemeno-ipfati(eh1ce9e7sVc9oe)so–ptteahr.is ARCHIVE(2)/KOBAL
RomanVespa:DearDiary Thekidswithabike:Quadrophenia tceianmrdresyoLinfagmwtobhrrekeptintraogsmcalsiaswseseolliflfeeas,scbVaupetseupflartosimm–aattgheaeliyndaegaadi-n BFINATIONAL
THEFIVEKEY…
POSTER
ROWS
Everynowandthenafilmposter
campaignturnsbussheltersinto
sitesofcontestation.Istherereally
nosuchthingasbadpublicity?
ByAshleyClark
TheItaliandistributorBIM
wasforcedtoapologisewhen
itsposterfor12YearsaSlave
–dominatedbyBradPitt
1 2
ratherthanthefilm’sactual TheOutlaw(1941) MoscowontheHudson (1984)
star–-promptedoutrage, HowardHughes’swesternhadfallenfoul In1987,artistSaulSteinbergsuccessfully
whilethehand-drawnUK oftheHaysCodewheninitiallyreleasedin suedvariouspartiesinvolvedwithproducing
quadforthehomoerotic 1943.Thatdidn’tdetertheeccentricbillionaire andpromotingtheRobinWilliamscomedyon
thrillerStrangerbytheLakehasbeenstripped fromwhippingupastormwiththegaudily thegroundsthatitspostercopiedthecelebrated
ofall‘perceivednudity’toqualifyforoutdoor designedposter–membersofthepublicclaimed ‘ViewoftheWorldfrom9thAvenue’hehad
use.Theseareonlythemostrecentexamplesof tobeshockedataglimpseofJaneRussell’s createdforaNewYorkercover.Thedefencethat
posterartrufflingfeathers… (actuallyinvisible)nipple. theposterwasafair-use‘parody’didn’twash.
8|Sight&SoundMarch2014