Venice Film Festival

Whilst the Venice Film Venice is going on, there are three pictures that have been attracting more attention than most. Jonathan Glazer's alien/vampire/ loneliness drama/horror Under The Skin has certainly been making waves - including a 5 star 'first look' review by Xan Brooks from the Guardian. Based on Michael Faber's novel of the same name, an alluring woman wanders the Highlands of northern Scotland for male victims. I haven't seen either of Glazer's previous feature length films Sexy Beast and Birth, but his music videos and commercials are quite brilliant. Ok so praise for the direction of a TV advert, one of the most irritating visual manifestations of capitalism, feels like a tarnishment but just watch this and this, and this too. Not to mention his award winning work in music videos: particularly the UNKLE feat. Thom Yorke one, which is utterly brutal and phenomenal. I will watch his features soon in preparation for Under The Skin. Bodes well.

The second is the Terry Gilliam surreal sci-fi The Zero Theorem, starring Christoph Waltz and David Thewlis among others. It touches on themes linked with the Age of Information and the loneliness computers pre-suppose (i.e. you don't need anyone else). It could be very good like Fear And Loathing and Brazil, or it could be consigned to the Gilliam 'cult' bin - I did not enjoy Baron Munchhausen at all. Anything with Gilliam is bound to be interesting, and anything with Waltz is bound to have a hint of charm so the fact that this project had been pushed back for years shouldn't make too much difference.

The movie I've been most looking forward to this year though is Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron and cinematographer Emmanuel Lebezki's latest Gravity. With George Clooney and Sandra Bullock (not my favourite actors admittedly) in the lead roles as lost space walkers this is the latest in a long line of 2013 science fiction movies, but will probably be the best. I'm such a huge fan of Children Of Men and the long extended tracking shots therein that I will pay the extortionate entry fees that cinemas in England charge to go see it. There have reportedly been problems with Gravity because it's release has been pushed back many times - it was originally set to show at Cannes in May - and, sure, the revolving door of A-list actresses (Angelina Jolie, Natalie Portman) that have been signed up to play the Bullock character has caused problems but in Cuaron I will always trust. Look forward to many long shots, plenty of spaceship destroying CGI (but used in a cool way. It does seem to be easy for big budget movies to splurge too much time on computer effects, to the point where the picture completely relies on them but, again, in Cuaron I trust.) and 'authentic' space walking choreography, or something.


Things to look forward to when they get general releases in the coming months.