Zootopia (2016) or How Sad Happy Endings Really are

And, yes, this is the last film I've watched. It was couple of days ago in a poor neighbourhood in Thessaloniki, Greece. There's a lovely open air cinema over there, named after one of our 'national actresses', Tzeni Karezi (strangely enough, we have two of those, the first one being Aliki Vougiouklaki, you might have never heard them if you're not somehow related to Greece, but it's ok). Back to the screening: it had free entrance and it has sold out, meaning every single chair was taken and too many kids and families were sitting on the floor or on any random chair-shaped corner. I did the same and it was fun!

Saving the world one film at a time: The True Cost & Co

You might wonder why, oh, why I am not posting films I love so often any more. Is it because I'm not watching any? Is it because I don't have the time to talk about them? And if the answer for the above is yes, you will still wonder: is it ever possible for a passionate cinephile to give up on his passion?

Well, the answer is yes and the answer is no at the same time. There has to be something that takes over. Something bigger. Something better.

To cut a long story short, no, I haven't stop watching films, but I watch much less than before, and, dear friends, it's true that I don't find the time to analyse them much, especially in written. Only because I am more concerned with other things, such as changing the world (sic).

So here it goes: lately I have been drawn to films describing or asking for a change. The environmentalist in me, the activist in me, grew stronger and stronger. I watch documentaries that inspire me, that make me part of a global movement for change. A movement that advocates love and respect for our planet, our fellow human beings and everything in between. You can call it the transition movement, or you can give it any other name, but it all boils down to one thing: the need for humanity to stop being reckless with natural resources, whether they are soil, woods, oceans or, why not, workers in the developing countries (this last one being human resources). 

So, here are the four films I've watched over the past months and touched me to the bone. Were they all inspiring? Because, inspiring documentaries are more convincing, you will say. And I will agree with you. Well, they were not all inspiring. I guess at least one of them left me in despair, if I'm allowed to admit that. With a feeling that things might or might not change, and the chances are with the latter. But, you know what? Even this feeling makes you wanna fight to change the unchangeable.

Sacco & Vanzetti (1971)

I am not sure why this post was not on time. Or, maybe I am: it is not the easiest thing on earth to write about social injustice, the shortcomings of Law as a social practice and the uptightness of the upper management (sic). Hierarchy is a wall more unbreakable than the Berliner wall -that had to fall, eventually.

To cut a long story short, as this post comes quite late -it was originally planned to glorify the successful event organised by Cinematheque de la Ville de Luxembourg with the opportunity of the screening of Sacco & Vanzetti (1971), the original feature film by Giuliano Montaldo- injustice is hard to cope with and even harder to digest. But we manage to live with it every single day, just as we manage to pretend we don't quite care.

The screening was a clear success, the venue almost sold out thanks to the Italians -I've noticed these bravissimi Italiani in Luxembourg, how they are sticking together and showing fraternity in every possible sense, whether it is to go and have a pizza or an aperitivo all'italiano, or to support a cultural event. And this was a big event indeed, as the director himself, now well at his eighties, was invited to present his film and take questions from the audience. 

The moving film was contrapuntal to the allegro director, who was lively and energetic and told us about his future plans to do a biographical documentary on Gian Maria Volonté, a leading Italian actor.

As for Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, they were courageous and true to themselves and they deserve all our respect -I'm thankful to the film that acquainted me to their story. They stood for what they believed until the end and they died in the electric chair only because the "upper management" could not accept that they lived through vehemently xenophobe times and immigrants were not welcome at Massachusetts (or elsewhere, for that sake), let alone immigrants with anarcho-communistic tendencies.

Kisses to the Children (2011) and Judaism in Greece

There are shocking historical facts that sometimes fail to make an impression, probably due to the overwhelming amount of information we are fed and never quite digest. Sure, we've heard it all before,  but did we ever found the time to contemplate upon the true nature of facts and figures? There are atrocious topics shadowing the cities we love to live in, but we never had the time to properly address them. It is a pity that each one of us does not dedicate a thought for no more than a split second to acknowledge people who were massively and systematically eradicated with no obvious reason. Could any reason be solid enough to sustain such an unimaginable act, after all? History sometimes doesn't make sense.

The Holocaust was probably the most shivering paradigm of a time when history ceased making any sense. Thousands of people boarded ships and trains; little did they carry with them. They feared the worse, but what awaited them was out of the scope of anyone's imagination; that was a puzzling assumption to make upon hearing that nobody took seriously a Greek Jew who escaped from Auschwitz and went back to Thessaloniki to describe the atrocities that were taking place back there. Nobody took him seriously, they thought he has gone nuts; and that was a sane person's reaction.

No Comment

Press statement on the closure of the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT) by the Greek Government (find the PDF version here). Issued by FERA, the Federation of European Film Directors.

All democracies need a plurality of media voices if they are to survive: Greece, the mother of European democracy, is no exception. In these difficult times Greece needs its public broadcaster more than ever, if consensus and hope are to be found.

The Greek people are also entitled to continuity of news, film and audiovisual culture, which a functioning ERT can provide. Its film makers must not be arbitrarily prevented from making films and programmes. Culture and free speech are not merely optional; without them democracy will wither away.

To reform ERT may be necessary, but to close it is a dangerous and destructive step into authoritarianism. The film directors of Europe, through FERA, urge Prime Minister Samaras to work now with all parties, and all people of good will, to bring this precious national asset back to life without delay.

The Past (2013)

When we are talking about actor's and actresse's vehicles, this is what we have in mind. Berenice Bejo certainly did not need any more vehicles for herself, after her triumphant silent worldwide-hit The Artist (2012), but she had to prove than she can be jovial no more; she had to be on the verge of a nervous break-down (sic), incapable to control her sentimental life or her acts, lost in the turmoil of mixed feelings.

La Cage Doree or On being a foreigner

The Golden Cage is exactly what we are all looking for; ready to give up freedom for comfort, security and quality of life. Quality of life stands for things we can own, not abstractions. Being bohemian is not declared as a component of high standards of living, so freedom, is ruled out of the equation. Freedom is not of this world anyway.

So, you actually have to choose between the following two: do you want to be poor (in a crisis-struck or plain poor country) or do you prefer being a foreigner (anywhere else)? This is the burning question of our generation. It has always been for me, coming from one of the so-called countries of the south. Classified as rebellious, lazy, irresponsible countries.

Too many strawberries will kill you

Sara is picking up wild strawberries. She's in a hurry fill up her basket, because it's uncle's Aron's nameday and that's supposed to be his present. Unfortunately, Sara is not left in peace and the womanizer of a cousin steals a kiss. Her basket falls down, strawberries spilling on the ground and before she has the time to deal with it, the Gong sounds, summons everyone inside the house. It's brunch time. 

A blonde neat girl picking Wild Strawberries (1957) and other innocent childhood memories, together with bizarre dreams are becoming the topic of Dr. Isak's Borg visual experiences. Ingmar Bergman relates strawberries with innocence and slight erotic tension and longing for the past, so much longing.

Sweetheart Come (2012)

Luxembourg is very much into documentaries lately. Hamilius, a docu on hip hop and graffiti culture largely filmed in the very center of the city, hence the name on 2010 made quite a sensation. On 2011 the big hit was a documentary on  life in the countryside, featuring lovely cows in its poster, De Bauerblues, and rating first in the box office between the Luxembourgish productions and co-productions -even if High/Low got the prize for best docu on Luxemburgish Film Prize. 2012 saw even more documentary productions, among others the most famed   and productive local director Andy Sleck's D'Belle Epoque starring the beautiful Vicky Krieps, Cello Tales by Anne Schiltz and Sweetheart Come, which particularly caught my attention. I don't know which one will be the hit in the box-office and on Letzebuerg Filmpreis this season,  but I doubt it will be this one. Sweetheart come, is a beautiful piece of cinematography, but definitely not tailored-made for the conservative little audience of the Grand Duchy. 

Gulabi Gang (2012)

India is changing, no matter how slowly. It's a message full of hope, coming from a documentary that takes upon the deeds of Sampat Pal Devi, a middle aged Indian who dared to go against social injustice in general and domestic abuse/violence that women are largely facing in particular; she questioned the children marriages, the dowries, the corruption of the authorities that remained idle in many cases due to bribery and she managed to bring about a wind of change.

On Shipwrecks or Life of Pi

This day last year the Costa Concordia was sailing happily near the Italian shore. Not too near, until its Captain decided he had the right to be careless. A bit after nine thirty in the afternoon the emergency signal rung. The evacuation plan worked out well for more than three thousand passengers and crew. It didn't for thirty-two of them, who lost their lives in their effort to escape. Two of the bodies were never found.

Last year on this day and for some days after, Gianpaolo,  my then roommate, was utterly embarrassed from the disaster; he was blaming the Captain, not only for being irresponsible, but also for giving a bad name to Italians, as he said. The Captain in question is restricted in his residence and did not yet face trial for manslaughter, for which he is accused. As for the ship, it still lies on its side, near the island of Giglio, waiting to be towed away - a costly operation.

Chernobyl Diaries (2012)

Chernobyl is a darn good concept to exploit; that was my first thought, when I learnt they were doing this film. Early childhood memories  swept into my present and upsetted it. I lived through that radioactive spring, I remembered, and that radioactive summer. Well aware of the fact that I was at no point to  pick fruits from the trees in my village near Thessaloniki, I had nonetheless only abstract perception of the rest. My grandma did not make her traditional sweet delicacy from rose petals, they were supposedly infected by this impossible danger. I tried to look at the roses up close, I tried hard to discern their radioactive qualities; they hadn't explained me that it was 100% invisible.

Nothing can Undo the Past

Pedophilia is “a medical condition, rather than a moral failing,”  says James Cantor, an associate professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, who is doing research on pedophilia from a biological perspective, searching for brain-based and other physical differences that distinguish pedophiles from non-pedophiles.“Nobody chooses to be a pedophile.”

Cantor, after research involving brain-scans and other methods, found out that pedophiles had significant biological differences from the rest. In his research published on 2008 "he theorizes that, due to abnormal functioning in brain networks, the instinct that children provoke in pedophiles is erotic, rather than the typical urge to nurture and protect. He also believes that the finding is one more piece of evidence for the case that pedophilia is caused by a biological susceptibility that starts before birth."

Slumdog Millionaire with RIFF

One more afternoon exploring cultures left us impressed with its organisation, variety and vigour; it also reminded us of Slumdog Millionaire, and it did well -because every other time you read a book or watch a film, different aspects of it talk to you, lull and mesmerise you. Every other time it's like the first time, and that took me a long time to learn; being a kid who wanted to attain all the wisdom of the world gave me an appetite for the new, always the new, and hindered me from appreciating the glare of the old gold.

Desert Flower and Female Genital Mutilation

“When I was a child, I said, ‘I do not want to be a woman.’ Why, when it is so painful? Let us try and change what that means, to be a woman.”

Waris Dirie was the first woman to make the practice of Female Genital Mutilation public. She talked openly about the experience she suffered as a child, when  living in Somalia in a nomadic tribe, during an interview that brought awareness to the subject. She then went on to become a UN ambassador for the abolition of FGM and she is now actively working towards the cause.

On the Path with the RIFFers

Tonight, I attended the first ever thematic evening organised by RIFF, maybe the most inspired cultural organisation here in Luxembourg; and I'm not saying that because they are my friends, and fellow ex-volunteers, no, I'm saying it because it's true. In the first instance, check their name: RIFF stands for Rocking Integration on Futuristic Festival -isn't that totally nuts, and cool, and lovely?

Then, look at the events they are proposing this year: not some lengthy conferences or banal workshops, where you are told to do this and that, but you are the shy participant who hides behind people's backs hoping it will never be your turn, no. RIFF is proposing you to eat and drink, to dance if you feel like it, but you are not obliged to, to meet new people, have a chat, then see a film and then go home and talk about the new cultural experience you had an make people jealous. Food and drinks and dances and film, they are related to one broad cultural region per event; tonight it was the Balkan Paths event. Ow, what an event.

Welcome to "All Saints" (2011)

"All Saints" is a Greek hospital. A hospital where funny things happen. Like in many Greek hospitals, more or less.  Several sectors are not running like the should in GR, some of them you see in the news, some others you don't; this is a film for the Greek Public Health System, a problematic and deficient one. Thanks to Sotiris Goritsas and his sense of humour, the tragicomic events that you will witness taking place in the film will only make you laugh at this time. They can still make you feel quite awkward, though, if you consider that they are not fictional at all.

Le Havre or An African Container and its Consequences

Aki Kaurismaki always had two ambivalent qualities in his films: the ability to keep a certain distance, on the opposite side of let's say Hollywood, that tries to force feelings -either in its soaked-to-tears dramas or its feel-good comedies- and a certain naive take on life and its adventures. He can observe the world with an innocent child's eyes or he can let one of his characters do so; if you are acquainted with his filmography, you certainly know what I mean. Likewise, a retro feeling is usually present, even if his stories are situated in our very much post-modern world. 

International Aids Day with House of Boys

The 1st of December is the International Aids Day, a day dedicated to the War of Humanity vs HIV. Aids is a problem that touches us all, men, women, gays and straights, but you know that already, don't you? I will cut the preaching short and continue to mix good causes with cinema, as always. Just to add how much I miss my Athenian days, when with my friend Julie I was attending every singe Anti-Aids screening. Morbid I was, oh dear. Like when I wanted to write a piece on Cancer on the Screen and my prof found my idea scary. Life is hard, let's face it.

Bicycle Film Festival

When Brendt Barbur was hit by a bus while biking in New York city, he was not discouraged. On the contrary, he came up with the idea to transform his painful experience to something beautiful instead. That's how Bicylce Film Festival was born. The Festival, "a platform to celebrate the bicycle through music, art and, of course, film" is said to be "a major catalyst for the urban bike movement" that we lately witness all over the world. 

Thanks to arty bicycle-rider Georgia, I was informed for the up and coming  Athenian version of the Festival. The Bike Film Screening will take place from Thursday 8 till Sunday 11 December at Michael Cacogiannis Foundation, Peiraios 206, Tavros, GR, while the rest of the activities, such as exhibitions, parties, BMX and CycloCross contests will span all over the city of Athens.