I must admit that the following 4 films were tough to rank. They all could have been tied for number four, but that would have been a total cop-out.
Today's edition of the Sweet Films to See series highlights Biùtiful, Winter's Bone, Black Swan and Somewhere.
7) Biùtiful
It’s the latest film from Alejandro González Iñárritu. Need I say more? Amores Perros, 21 Grams, and Babel were all some of the strongest films that came out of the last decade. Plot details are scarce, Dark Horizon’s had the wordiest with: “A loner uses shady dealings to maintain a balance between survival in a marginal neighborhood and safeguarding the future of his young children who are floating aimlessly through life. Things take a turn for the worse when he is confronted by his childhood friend, who is now a policeman”. Apparently this isn’t going to be González Iñárritu’s typical shattered narrative.
Add this with Javier Bardem, and I’m pretty damn excited. It’s getting to the point we González Iñárritu needs to show that he can do more than just make sense of an incoherent narrative, and Bardem hasn’t really done anything since winning his Oscar.
Word on the street is that Biùtiful will premiere at Cannes and then will be released in the fall.
6) Winter’s Bone
The winner of this year’s Grand Jury Prize at Sundance for Dramatic Competition, Winter’s Bone is the second feature from Debra Granik. Her debut Down to the Bone was one of the most devastating films I have ever seen. It handled the subject of drug addiction in a brutally raw way that most films don’t. She also got a knockout performance from Vera Farmiga. Down to the Bone unfortunately was poorly released and I really don’t think many people have even heard of it.
Which brings me to Winter’s Bone. When presenting the award to Granik, Parker Posey said “If this film doesn’t get the release it deserves, I’m going to stab myself”. Thankfully it has been picked up for distribution! With bleak subject matter and an unknown cast, it will be a tough sell and hopefully good word-of-mouth will help it.
The film tells the story of a young woman who searches for her addict father during the collapse of their family. Her father used their house to front his bail, and now that he has skipped town, her family is at risk of being homeless. It’s sure to be a tough film to sit through, but based on previous work and word of mouth, it will sincerely be worth it.
Winter’s Bone opens in select cities on June 11.
5) Black Swan
A movie about the seedy world of New York City ballet. Sounds different, right? Add in the hopeful comeback of Winona Ryder, elements of supernatural fantasy/paranoia, and a rumoured lesbian scene between stars Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis... and you’ve got one damn must-see movie. For anyone.
Seriously though, director Darren Aronofsky has proven he’s a man of many talents with π, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, and The Wrestler. All of his films have been extremely different, engaging and well-crafted. Who wouldn’t be excited?
Fox Searchlight is distributing the film, which will probably premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, and then be released late fall.
4) Somewhere
It’s been almost four years since Sofia Coppola had a slight misstep with Marie-Antoinette. It wasn’t the best reception for her after her Oscar win for Lost in Translation. It may have been fatigue since her last 3 films have all, to some extent, dealt with a young woman who is lost and disillusioned. Somewhere sounds to be a much fresher take on Coppola’s interest in soul searching. Stephen Dorff stars as a bad boy actor (himself?) aimlessly wandering through life at the Chateau Marmot. His world gets thrown into disarray when his 11-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning) shows up.
I’ve really been a strong admirer of Coppola’s work. I personally didn’t mind Marie-Antoinette that much, but do agree that it was nowhere near as strong as either Lost in Translation or The Virgin Suicides. Hopefully this will be a return to form and put her back in the game.
I’m interested to see what she’ll do with a film driven by solely a male protagonist (Translation was split between Murray and Johansson... so that doesn’t count). Typically, her male characters aren’t that prominent or interesting , so it will be intriguing to see what she does.
Somewhere should come out sometime in the fall (September?)
The next edition of Sweet Films to See will be my top 3 most anticipated movies for 2010! Get excited!
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