Munich - some things never change: The Edge of War is Netflix posh-washing for an elite that’s still in charge today

With the country apoplectic at the entitled behaviour in Downing Street, does the world need the reputation of another Tory flop, Neville Chamberlain, redeemed? As Robert Harris’s historical thriller hits Netflix this week.

A naughty party on a lawn. Drunk posh people swanning about while oozing entitlement. Everyone acting like the normal rules don’t apply to them. Men urinating openly. Though the booze has run out, someone’s got a cheeky plan to obtain some more… No, this isn’t Downing Street during the pandemic, this is the opening scene of Munich: The Edge of War – an intriguingly pointless film adapted from the book of the same name by historical fiction colossus Robert Harris.

It would be churlish to damn a film for the unfortunate timing of its release, but as it drops on Netflix this week, it’s hard to take Munich seriously amid the howls of national indignation at the recent antics in No 10. For while the film is an attempt to repair the reputation of pre-war PM Neville Chamberlain (witness David Davis quoting what was said to a disgraced Chamberlain in 1940: “In the name of God, go”), it’s mainly a film about powerful yet inept people from privileged elites making a mess of things. I mean, tell me: what’s not to hate right now?

Harris’s promotion for the film has centred around this slightly renegade desire to redeem Chamberlain (prime minister 1937-1940), who at the Munich Conference of 1938 took Hitler at his word that he didn’t want to enter into war – only for Hitler to confound his policy of appeasement by being a bastard and not a gentleman. Every world leader ever since, including in recent years Cameron and Obama, is at some point said to be acting like Chamberlain. It’s become an accepted synonym for being weak, overly trusting or unable to grasp a situation. But where the world has been happy to designate Chamberlain as a totemic figure of embarrassing Tory failure, Harris regards Chamberlain’s failure as “noble… not squalid”.

Read more at: Munich: The Edge of War is Netflix posh-washing for an elite that’s still in charge today | The Independent

Cinema: Dutch film "Only Decent People" tests Jewish, black taboos - by Cnaan Liphshiz

The dreamy expression of a child at a chocolate factory slowly spreads across Geza Weisz’s handsome face as he watches the quivering breasts and buttocks of young black women dancing around him at an Amsterdam nightclub.

The scene appears in “Only Decent People,” a dark and provocative Dutch-language film that examines the fraught relations between the country’s Jews and other minorities and stars Weisz, a Jewish Amsterdammer and a major movie star in Holland.

Based on a 2009 best-selling novel by the Dutch Jewish author Robert Vuijsje, the film was the second-most popular in Holland last year, drawing 350,000 viewers in more than 100 theaters — a substantial number in a nation of 16 million.

But its stereotypical depictions of Moroccans, Jews and black Surinamese have drawn intense criticism in a country where the lessons of colonialism and the Holocaust have instituted a strict standard of political correctness — a standard that some say only a Jewish artist could breach.

“If ‘Only Decent People’ were written by someone who was not Jewish or Surinamese, it would’ve have been seen as pure racism,” said Bart Wallet, a non-Jewish historian and expert on Dutch Jewry. “It is met with greater understanding because Robert Vuijsje is a Jewish man who has a Dutch Afro-Surinamese partner.”

In the film, Weisz plays a rebellious and dark-complexioned David Samuels, the son of affluent Jewish intellectuals who endures discrimination because he looks like a Moroccan. Estranged from both the Jewish community and the wider Dutch society on account of his looks, David embarks on a quest for black lovers that leads him to witness not only violence and promiscuity among Holland’s black underclass, but also the racist attitudes of his Jewish friends.

The film traffics freely in racial stereotypes: Blacks are lazy and greedy; whites are unhygienic; Jews are slave traders; Moroccans are violent. Such sentiments, combined with the film’s depiction of group sex and borderline rape, helped make “Only Decent People” a commercial success, but they also brought latent prejudices to the fore — bolstering the claims of critics who have argued that the film fosters rather than critiques Dutch racism.

Read more: Dutch film tests Jewish, black taboos | The Times of Israel

France - Cinema: 'The Intouchables' star Omar Sy voted France's favourite

French actor and comedian Omar Sy, who shot to international fame in the hit film "The Intouchables" was declared the darling of France on Sunday in a poll rating the country’s most popular people.

'Read more: The Intouchables' star Omar Sy voted France's favourite - FRANCE - FRANCE 24

Denmark: Woody Allen In Denmark: The Director's Next Film May Shoot In Copenhagen

Woody Allen is not done with you yet Europe. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the director has his sites set on Copenhagen, Denmark, for the location of his next film.

The currently untitled movie would be Allen's second since the Oscar-winning "Midnight in Paris" -- before the Denmark tale gets underway, he has "Nero Fiddled," a story set in Rome. It stars Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Roberto Benigni, Penélope Cruz and, in his first on-screen appearance since 2006's "Scoop," Allen himself.

As for the untitled Copenhagen flick, it won't begin production until 2013.

For more: Nero Fiddled Woody Allen

CINEMA: Oscars celebrate Europe - from the glorious to the gothic

He may be good at playing the strong silent type but Jean Dujardin, the French actor tipped to win the Oscar for Best Actor on Sunday for his portrayal of a silent movie star in The Artist, is rarely lost for words. Unless he's discussing what it feels like to be the toast of Tinseltown.

'I'm very proud, I'm shocked, I'm ... doubted!,' a slightly abashed Dujardin said on hearing he had been nominated for an Oscar.

With 10 nominations under its belt, including a nomination for Best Picture, French director Michel Hazanavicius's ode to 1920's Hollywood looks set to be covered in glory at this year's Academy Awards.

For more: Oscars celebrate Europe - from the glorious to the gothic - Monsters and Critics

Cinema: Italy’s ‘Caesar Must Die’ wins Berlin film festival’s top Golden Bear prize

 Italian documentary “Caesar Must Die,” showing inmates of a high-security prison staging Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar,” was awarded the Berlin film festival’s top award Saturday.

Directors Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Taviani received the Golden Bear award out of 18 contenders at what is the first of the year’s major European film festivals.

The Taviani brothers, both in their early 80s, thanked the international jury led by British director Mike Leigh and sent their greetings to the inmates of Rome’s Rebibbia prison, including former mafia leaders, who starred in the film.

For more: Italy’s ‘Caesar Must Die’ wins Berlin film festival’s top Golden Bear prize - The Washington Post

Pop Music: Whitney Houston: a brilliant and tragic life

Whitney Houston, who was found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel room on Saturday, rose from a gospel church choir in New Jersey to become one of the best-selling and most-admired female singers of all time.

With hits like "I Will Always Love You" - the theme song of what was her film acting debut in "The Bodyguard" opposite Kevin Costner in 1992 - and "The Greatest Love of All," Houston won six Grammys and more than 400 other awards in a 25-year career.

Her soaring voice influenced singers ranging from Beyonce and Alicia Keys to Mariah Carey and Celine Dion - and inspired thousands of copy-cat performers on TV talent shows.

For more: Whitney Houston: a brilliant and tragic life - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

Golden Globes 2012: Kate Winslet and Downton Abbey lead charge as Brits triumph

Downton Abbey scooped the biggest prize as Brits bashed the Yanks at Sunday’s Golden Globes.

Kate Winslet got in on the act by claiming Best Actress in a TV series for Mildred Pierce and Idris Elba took home Best Actor for BBC’s Luther.

Series creator Julian Fellowes joined Downton stars Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern to accept the best drama mini series award, and said: “The whole Downton adventure has been a fabulous one.

For more: Golden Globes 2012: Kate Winslet and Downton Abbey lead charge as Brits triumph - mirror.co.uk

Cinema - Film Festivals: Cheapflights Customers Pick World's top 10 film festivals

With the Sundance Film Festival starting next Thursday and the Oscars not too far off, the movie buffs at online travel adviser Cheapflights have compiled a top 10 list of their favorite film festivals across the globe.

These are:
1. Sundance Film Festival - Park City, Utah, United States. This year, the festival will run from Jan 19-29 in Park City, Utah, showcasing 200 films whittled down from nearly 9,000 submissions. Can't make it to the big event? On Jan 26, nine movie theaters across the United States will be hosting a filmmaker and his or her work as part of Sundance Film Festival USA, so you may be able to participate in the festivities wherever you are.

2) International Film Festival Rotterdam, the Netherlands. This year's event will run from Jan 25 to Feb 5, and will encompass 19 screening venues - upwards of 350,000 viewers are expected to attend. Rotterdam attendees are passionate movie-goers, so program directors make a point of stripping down the superfluous aspects of film, like commercials and trailers, for an untarnished viewing experience.

3) Cannes International Film Festival - Cannes, France. This year's star-studded festival will run from May 16-27. Attending the festival is by invitation only, but we suggest heading to the Tourist Office and getting passes to the Beach Cinema for free nightly screenings.  The highly esteemed Cannes Festival sets the trend for up-and-coming cinema every year while boosting the film industry's caliber worldwide. It is one of the most prominent film events recognized internationally,

4)Guadalajara Film Festival - Guadalajara, Mexico. The Latin American film has become a competitor in the global film industry as a direct result of this film Festival. From March 2-12, over 100,000 film lovers are expected to flood the streets and theaters of Guadalajara, viewing close to 200 films. While not as chaotic as Mexico City, Guadalajara is a destination perfect for exploring colonial history, enjoying the Mexican culture, shopping street markets and savoring traditional regional cuisine.

5) Rooftop Films - New York, New York, United States. The festival runs on weekends from May to September.

6) Toronto International Film Festival - Toronto, Canada. This exciting and extensive festival takes place in the beginning of September. This year from Sept 6 to 16, and close to 350,000 attendees head to Canada's largest metropolis in the hopes of viewing what will be the next classic piece of cinematic art. Aside from putting Canada on the map as a competitor in the global film industry, Toronto's festival has become a launching pad for the success of new films released every fall.

7) Venice International Film Festival - Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival started in 1932, making it the oldest film festival in the world. This year's festival will run from Aug 29 until Sept 8 and screen more than 275 projects, 75 of which will be national and international premieres.

8) Hong Kong International Film Festival - Hong Kong, China - This year's event will take place from March 21 to April 5, showcasing more than 330 titles from 50 countries to an expected 600,000 viewers. The Hong Kong International Film Festival has become one of the largest in the world, and has bridged the gap between Asian cinema and the global film industry.

9) Berlin International Film Festival- Berlin, Germany.  One of the most renowned film festivals in the world. The Berlin International Film Festival, also known as Berlinale combines the glamor of film making - parties, red carpet, high fashion - with the appreciation of cinematic art in a variety of genres. This year's festival will kick off on Feb 9 and last 10 days. It is expected that visitors from more than 115 countries will be in attendance to screen and discuss a variety of international films.

10) East End Film Festival - East London, United Kingdom. This festival is considered one of the largest film festivals in London, East End . It has continued to grow in the industry as a high-profile event for filmmakers. In 2011, more than 60 feature films were screened, along with hundreds of shorts, all from more than 30 different countries. This year's festival will be from July 3-8, coinciding with the Olympics where dozens of venues will open simultaneously in East London.

EU-Digest

Germany Next Stop On Woody Allen's European Tour?

Woody Allen is doing his version of the grand European tour.

His Midnight in Paris is still in theaters, the director is still shooting The Bop Decameron, set in Rome, but Allen is already making plans to head to Germany for his next project.

Bavaria studios in Munich is in negotiations with Allen to play the backdrop for his next, still-untitled project, which would shoot next summer.

For more: Germany Next Stop On Woody Allen's European Tour? - The Hollywood Reporter

Cinema/documentaries: The Virtual Revolution: Enemy of the state

Dr.Aleks Krotoski continues her investigation into how the world-wide-web is transforming our lives. In this second film in the series, she charts how, for better and for worse, the web is reshaping our relationship to authority and forging a new brand of politics.

Featuring stories from the digital front line in China, Iran and Eastern Europe and interviews with some of the web's biggest names – including its inventor Tim Berners-Lee (from Britain), Martha Lane Fox, Al Gore and the founders of Twitter and PayPal – this film presents the definitive guide to how the web is redrawing the political landscape and unleashing a battle of ideas across the world.

For more: BBC World Service - Documentaries - The Virtual Revolution: Enemy of the state

USA Today: Cinema - 'The Informant!' uses satire to punctuate a serious topic - by Claudia Puig

For the complete report from USATODAY.com click on this link

'Cinema - The Informant!' uses satire to punctuate a serious topic - by Claudia Puig

People magazine may just strip Matt Damon of his "sexiest man alive" title once they catch sight of the actor in the offbeat film The Informant!.
Portly — Damon packed on 30 pounds for the role — and sporting a ridiculous mustache, dorky wire-framed glasses and an unmoving helmet of hair, he's almost unrecognizable in the role of Mark Whitacre, a corporate whistle-blower who is not what he seems. Damon is superb as a demonically smart guy who comes across as rather dim. The Informant! is an odd, satirical comedy that director Steven Soderbergh has infused with a jaunty tone, in contrast to the serious subject matter. Its story of corporate malfeasance and corruption as well as individual greed couldn't be more timely, given the antics of bailed-out Wall Street companies and powerhouse banks. The dark comedy is based on the real-life much-publicized story of the highest-ranking corporate whistle-blower in American history.

Screen Daily: Cinema - Star Trek rules international roost with $35.5m overseas launch - by Jeremy Kay

For the complete report from the ScreenDaily click on this link

Cinema: Star Trek rules international roost with $35.5m overseas launch - by Jeremy Kay

Star Trek, J J Abrams’ franchise reboot from Paramount/Spyglass Entertainment, coaxed a sturdy $35.5m from more than 5,000 sites across 54 territories in its maiden voyage according to PPI estimates, ranking number one in 23 markets. In Europe weekend results were led predictably enough by the UK where Star Trek grossed $8.8m (£6m) from 501 venues. Excluding of £800,000 in previews this came in roughly 6% ahead of the £4.8m debut of Wolverine last weekend. Germany delivered $4.6m (€3.4m) including €430,000 in previews from 693 sites, roughly 17% ahead of the €3m for Wolverine, while Australia produced $3.4m (A$4.5m) from 210 venues. Star Trek grossed $2.8m (€2.1m) from 492 sites in France, $2.3m (Roubles 74m) from 450 locations in Russia.

Time Magazine: Entertainment - Kosovo to Cannes: Arta Dobroshi's Journey to The Silence of Lorna - by Stephanie Kirchner

For the complete report from TIME Magazine click on this link

Entertainment - Kosovo to Cannes: Arta Dobroshi's Journey to The Silence of Lorna - by Stephanie Kirchner

"Welcome to Pristina, have a nice day," the border policeman greets Arta Dobroshi as she arrives at the airport of Kosovo's capital. What would seem like a simple polite gesture to most, still strikes the Kosovo Albanian actress as odd. She had grown up in Pristina during the country's fight for independence in the '90s, when Serbian Security Forces carried out a campaign of repression and violence against Kosovo's ethnic Albanians. And while the violence is over, the memories are still painfully fresh. "Not long ago, I used to live in constant fear of the police," she says. "You would be scared that they'd see your passport and you'd get beaten. "

That's one reason why Dobroshi is so convincing in the role of Lorna, a young Albanian woman who dreams of opening a snack bar in Belgium with her boyfriend and agrees to a sinister plan: she is to marries Claudy, a junkie, for citizenship, kill him, then marry a Russian gangster who will pay richly for a Belgian passport. But the scheme falls apart when Lorna starts to fall for Claudy. The Silence of Lorna, which opens in the U.S. in July, is as much a love story as it is a thriller, and — being a Dardenne film — it has a good dose of social criticism, too.

BlogCritics.com: Cinema: The Golden Compass - Christians Lose Their Compass: A Closer Look At Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy

For the complete report from Blogcritics.com click on this link

Cinema: The Golden Compass - Christians Lose Their Compass: A Closer Look At Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy

Weeks before the film adaptation of the Philip Pullman book The Golden Compass was scheduled to open, Christian groups began plastering newspapers and in-boxes with dire warnings of a hidden anti-Christian agenda. Editorials began appearing in newspapers encouraging boycotts and FOX News picked up the drumbeat, dovetailing neatly as it did into their annual War Against The War On Christmas. Before the film even opened, the controversy drifted into schools and libraries, with a flurry of challenges against the books and some groups organizing boycotts against Scholastic, the books' publishing company.

The truth is that Pullman never once in the three books says that there is no God. Nor, as has been erroneously interpreted, does he portray the killing or the death of God. In the story that unfolds in the last two books, there are two fallen angels who have placed themselves in the position of God. It is specifically stated that neither of these beings is God or the Creator of the Universe. They are "false prophets" who have set themselves up as the ultimate power and wish to enslave mankind using various tools including The Magisterium. When the Catholic Church spends time and resources trying to discredit Hollywood fantasies like DaVinci Code or Golden Compass while, at the same time, evicting nuns onto the street to pay for their child abuse crimes, they reveal how dangerously out whack their priorities are.

Times on Line: Movie - "What would Jesus buy?" Pastor Billy is Revving up Americans to drop their obsession with shopping - by Suzy Jagger

For the complete report from the Times Online click on this link

Movie - "What would Jesus buy?" Pastor Billy is Revving up Americans to drop their obsession with shopping - by Suzy Jagger

"The Movie - "What would Jesus buy?" is revving up Americans to drop their obsession with shopping. It is about the antics of Bill Talen, a screen-writer who became so concerned about the influence of global corporations such as Walt Disney, Starbucks and Wal-Mart, and America’s obsession with shopping that he created the character of the Reverend, now the subject of a new film by Morgan Spurlock. While Mr Talen’s character is fictional, his message is genuine. The film, "What Would Jesus Buy?", opened in the US last week, and follows the actor, who tries to use the comedic preacher to urge Americans to question why they spend and consider the true cost of their purchases.

While Americans’ obsession with shopping has helped build the US to be the wealthiest country in the world with an economy valued at $13.9 trillion, the other side of the coin is that Americans have run up a combined consumer debt bill of $2.4 trillion. For the first time since the Great Depression, American households have a savings rate on average of zero – they spend all they earn.

Note EU-Digest: Last year, American shoppers spent $456.2 billion in retail holiday sales, accounting for 19.59 percent of industry sales, according to statistics from the National Retail Federation. The federation is predicting that US holiday sales for 2007 will be 4 percent higher than 2006. So, if the federation is correct, holiday sales will be $474.5 billion. The growth could be the lowest increase in shopping activity since 2002, when sales only increased 1.3 percent. Those data conflict with the 22nd annual survey of holiday spending by the American Research Group, in which the average shopper says he is going to spend $859 this year, down 5 percent from the $907 spent last year."

"What would Jesus buy" should also be an excellent movie for Europeans to see. They too, are hard on the way to becoming as addicted to shopping as the Americans. Pastor Billy says in the movie: “We seek satisfaction by shopping, by buying more and more things, and seem to be more and more dissatisfied.” Isn't that the truth - all we have to do is look at how our own children have become excessively consumer oriented by wicked advertising gimmicks, and as a result more prone to crime, drugs, and obeseity "

France 24: Woody Allen in Spain to prepare new film

For the full report from France 24 click on this link

Woody Allen in Spain to prepare new film

US film director Woody Allen is in Barcelona to prepare the filming of his latest film, which will be his first to be shot in Spain during a career that has spanned over three decades.The 71-year-old refused to answer question from the media regarding his new movie, which will star Spanish stars Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem as well as US actress Scarlett Johansson. It will be Allen's fourth straight film to be shot outside the United States.

Express: Cannes Film Festival: Cannes Do: Shiny Happy People

For the complete report from the Express click on this link

Cannes Film Festival: Cannes Do: Shiny Happy People

"The book-making at the Cannes festival in France on the winners is heating up; everyone has an opinion. Almost the same opinion. The lead was pretty much tied between "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" (the Romanian abortion movie — sorry, but it's faster) and the Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men." Then Tuesday dawned, and Julian Schnabel queered the deal with his luminous, painterly, unsentimental "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly." It's an adaptation of the book by former French Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who suffered a massive stroke and was left completely lucid but physically frozen. He dictated the memoir by blinking his left eyelid, and this process is presented as both poetic and tedious. Bauby died 10 days after the book's publication, but Schnabel pays him even-handed homage by presenting the roguish, healthy Bauby as rather a selfish jerk who pleased neither his wife nor his mistress and thought such a trauma could not happen to him because he was too cool for it."

AHN: Michael Moore's Documentary "Sicko" Opens At Cannes Film Festival - Mary K. Brunskill

For the complete report from AHN click on this link

Michael Moore's Documentary "Sicko" Opens At Cannes Film Festival - Mary K. Brunskill

Michael Moore's newest film, "Sicko," debuted at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday to a packed crowd. The film is a documentary criticizing the U.S. healthcare system, which Moore argues leaves 50 million U.S. citizens without access to medical care. Moore's argues 50 million Americans, including 9 million children, do not have insurance coverage and that those who are insured do not receive sufficient coverage.

The documentary contends that the U.S. healthcare system is more concerned in personal profit and protecting big business than it is with the health of American citizens.

Variety.com - Big boost for European cinema - by Ali Jafar

For the complete report by Variety.com click on this link

Big boost for European cinema - by Ali Jafar

2006 was a bumper year for European cinema, according to a report published by the The Council of Europe's European Audiovisual Observatory. Some 926 million cinema tickets were sold across the EU last year, a 3.6% jump on 2005, with European pics accounting for a 28% share of admissions, up from 25% the previous year.

European film production also was up by 47 features on 2005 to a total of 862 films.