While currently in the thick of the Sundance Film Festival, which is in full swing today, we’re keeping one eye on the Berlin Film Festival where in a just a few weeks, a whole new batch of movies will arrive to command our attention. Today organizers have revealed a strong handful of new movies set to be unveiled as part of Berlinale Special sidebar and Panorama.
Among the highlights are: David O. Russell‘s Oscar contender “American Hustle,” Diego Luna directed biopic “Cesar Chavez,” acclaimed Canadian documentary “Watermark” and Aussie omnibus “The Turning.” But for our purposes we’re turning our attention to two films in particular: “Two Faces Of January” and “A Long Way Down.” Below you’ll find more info on those two films and on the next page, the full list of Berlinale and Paranorma additions.
The former is one we’ve been waiting a while for, simply because of the talent involved: it’s the directorial debut of “Drive” writer Hossein Amini, based on the book by Patricia Highsmith, scored by Alberto Iglesias and starring Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst and Oscar Isaac. Pretty great, right? Here’s the official synopsis followed by some new images from the film:
1962. A glamorous American couple, the charismatic CHESTER MACFARLAND (Mortensen) and his alluring younger wife COLETTE (Dunst), arrive in Athens by boat via the Corinthian Canal. While sightseeing at the Acropolis they encounter RYDAL (Isaac), a young, Greek-speaking American who is working as a tour guide, scamming tourists on the side. Drawn to Colette’s beauty and impressed by Chester’s wealth and sophistication, Rydal gladly accepts their invitation to dinner.
However, all is not as it seems with the MacFarlands and Chester’s affable exterior hides darker secrets. When Rydal visits the couple at their exclusive hotel, Chester presses him to help move the body of a seemingly unconscious man who he claims attacked him. In the moment, Rydal agrees but as events take a more sinister turn he finds himself compromised and unable to pull himself free. His increasing infatuation with the vulnerable and responsive Colette gives rise to Chester’s jealousy and paranoia, leading to a tense and dangerous battle of wits between the two men. Their journey takes them from Greece to Turkey, and to a dramatic finale played out in the back alleys of Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar.
As for “A Long Way Down,” it’s based on the book by Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity,” “An Education”), stars Pierce Brosnan,Toni Collette, Aaron Paul and Imogen Poots and kicks off when four strangers meet on top of a London skyscraper on New Year’s Eve. What brings them there? They all wanted to commit suicide, but instead decide to stick around help each other out. New images from the movie below.
BERLINALE SPECIAL GALAS
A Long Way Down
United Kingdom / Germany
By Pascal Chaumeil
With Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette, Aaron Paul, Imogen Poots
World premiere
American Hustle
USA
By David O. Russell
With Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence
German premiere
Cesar Chavez
USA
By Diego Luna
With Michael Peña, America Ferrera, Rosario Dawson, John Malkovich
World premiere
Dans La Cour (In The Courtyard)
France
By Pierre Salvadori
With Catherine Deneuve, Gustave Kervern
World premiere
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared
Sweden
By Felix Herngren
With Robert Gustafsson, Iwar Wiklander, Mia Skäringer, Alan Ford, David Wiberg
German premiere
The Turning
Australia
By Marieka Walsh, Warwick Thornton, Jub Clerc, Robert Connolly, Anthony Lucas, Rhys Graham, Ashlee Page, Tony Ayres, Claire McCarthy, Stephen Page, Shaun Gladwell, Mia Wasikowska, Simon Stone, David Wenham, Jonathan auf der Heide, Justin Kurzel, Yaron Lifschitz, Ian Meadows
With Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Miranda Otto, Richard Roxburgh, Hugo Weaving
International premiere
Das Finstere Tal (The Dark Valley)
Austria / Germany
By Andreas Prochaska
With Sam Riley, Tobias Moretti, Paula Beer, Thomas Schubert, Carmen Gratl
World premiere
Diplomacy
France / Germany
By Volker Schlöndorff
With André Dussollier, Niels Arestrup, Robert Stadlober, Burghart Klaussner
World premiere
The Two Faces Of January
United Kingdom / USA / France
By Hossein Amini
With Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst, Oscar Isaac
World premiere
En Du Elsker (Someone You Love)
Denmark
By Pernille Fischer Christensen
With Mikael Persbrandt, Trine Dyrholm, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, Sofus Rønnov, Eve Best
World premiere
Afternoon Of A Faun: Tanaquil Le Clercq – documentary
USA
By Nancy Buirski
International premiere
Baal (1969)
Germany
By Volker Schlöndorff
With Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Sigi Graue, Margarethe von Trotta
Festival premiere
Kathedralen Der Kultur – film project in 3D
Germany / Denmark / Austria / Norway / France
By Wim Wenders, Michael Glawogger, Michael Madsen, Robert Redford, Margreth Olin, Karim Aïnouz
World premiere
Night Will Fall – documentary (work in progress)
United Kingdom
By André Singer (Forbidden Rites, World in Action)
World premiere
The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came To Eden – documentary
USA
By Dayna Goldfine and Dan Geller
European premiere
The Unknown Known – documentary
USA
By Errol Morris
German premiere
Watermark – documentary
Canada
By Jennifer Baichwal (Manufactured Landscapes), Edward Burtynsky
European premiere
We Come As Friends – documentary
France / Austria
By Hubert Sauper
European premiere
PANORAMA FICTION FEATURES
Asabani Nistam! (I’m Not Angry!) – Iran
by Reza Dormishian
With Baran Kosari, Navid Mohammadzadeh, Reza Behboudi, Misagh Zare, Bahram Afshari
IP
Blind – Norway / Netherlands
by Eskil Vogt
With Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Henrik Rafaelsen, Vera Vitali, Marius Kolbenstvedt
EP
Difret – Ethopia
by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari
With Meron Getnet, Tizita Hagere
EP
Fieber (Fever) – Luxembourg / Austria
By Elfi Mikesch
With Eva Mattes, Martin Wuttke, Carolina Cardoso, Nicole Max, Sascha Ley
WP
Güeros – Mexico
By Alonso Ruízpalacios
With Ilse Salas
WP
Highway – India
By Imtiaz Ali
With Randeep Hooda, Alia Bhatt
WP
Ieji (Homeland) – Japan
By Nao Kubota
With Kenichi Matsuyama, Yuko Tanaka, Sakura Ando, Takashi Yamanaka, Seiyo Uchino
WP
In Grazia di Dio – Italy
By Edoardo Winspeare
With Celeste Casciaro, Laura Licchetta, Barbara De Matteis, Anna Boccadamo, Gustavo Caputo
WP
Love Is Strange – USA
By Ira Sachs
With John Lithgow, Alfred Molina, Marisa Tomei, Charlie Tahan, Cheyenne Jackson
IP
Mo Jing (That Demon Within) – Hong Kong, China
By Dante Lam
With Daniel Wu, Nick Cheung
WP
Na kathese ke na kitas (Standing Aside, Watching) – Greece
By Yorgos Servetas
With Marina Symeou, Marianthi Pantelopoulou, Yorgos Kafetzopoulos, Nikos Georgakis
EP
Night Flight – Republic of Korea
By LeeSong Hee-il
With Lee Jae-jun, Kwak Shi-yang
WP
Nước (2030) – Vietnam
By Nghiêm-Minh Nguyễn-Võ
With Quỳnh Hoa, Quý Bình, Thạch Kim Long, Hoàng Trần Minh Đức, Hoàng Phi
WP
Patardzlebi (Brides) – Georgia / France
By Tinatin Kajrishvili
With Mari Kitia, Giorgi Maskharashvili
WP
Risse im Beton (Cracks in Concrete) – Austria
By Umut Dağ
With Murathan Muslu, Alechan Tagaev, Mehmet Ali Salman, Erdem Turkoglu, Ivan Kriznjak
WP
The Midnight After – Hong Kong, China
By Fruit Chan
With Wong You-nam, Simon Yam, Kara Hui, Janice Man, Suet Lam
WP
Viharsarok (Land of Storms) – Hungary
By Adam Császi
With Andras Sütő, Ádám Varga, Sebastian Urzendowsky
WP
YE (The Night) – People’s Republic of China
By Hao Zhou
With Zhou Hao, Liu Xiao Xiao, Li Jin Kang, Zhou Feng Qi
WP