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Thanks for following the SIFF thread.
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The SFIFF 2015 competitions, documentary and feature films
I'm not getting to see many of them, this year, but here they are. Ones I've seen/covered are marked. A few more I still hope to see/cover. But the festival is already more than half over.
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2015 GGA NEW DIRECTORS PRIZE (NARRATIVE FEATURE) COMPETITION
Bota, Iris Elezi, Thomas Logoreci, Albania/Italy/Kosovo
El Cordero, Juan Francisco Olea, Chile
Court, Chaitanya Tamhane, India
A Few Cubic Meters of Love, Jamshid Mahmoudi, Iran/Afghanistan
Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere, Diep Hoang Nguyen, Vietnam/France/Germany/Norway
Run, Philippe Lacôte, Ivory Coast/France
Sworn Virgin, Laura Bispuri, Italy/Switzerland/Germany/Albania/Kosovo
The Tribe, Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy, Ukraine
Vincent, Thomas Salvador, France
2015 GOLDEN GATE AWARDS DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION
Beats of the Antonov, Hajooj Kuka, Sudan/South Africa
Democrats, Camilla Nielsson, Denmark
A German Youth, Jean-Gabriel Périot, France/Germany/Switzerland
The Iron Ministry, J.P. Sniadecki, China/USA
Of Men and War, Laurent Bécue-Renard, France/Switzerland
Sunday Ball, Eryk Rocha, Brazil
T-Rex, Drea Cooper, Zackary Canepari, USA
Very Semi-Serious, Leah Wolchok, USA
Western, Turner Ross, Bill Ross IV, USA
The Wolfpack, Crystal Moselle, USA
The 58th San Francisco International Film Festival runs April 23–May 7
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SWORN VIRGIN/VERGINE GIURATA (Laura Bispuri 2015)
Its theme of traditional Albanian gender-shift from female-to-male which the protagonist shifts again to return to living as a woman is an odd angle on a subject matter of much current interest, and big current Italian star Alba Rorrwacher adds to the attraction. It's also an elegant, subtle treatment and debuted at Berlin in competition in February. But it's a bit too chilly, humorless, and lacking in excitement for my taste. Rohrwacher, who resembles a young, less stylish (or fun) Tilda Swinton, seems to me unconvincing either as a man or a woman -- but that may be part of the point. In competition for best feature at the SFIFF, this seems likely to be of added local interest.
Showing 4 & 7 May 2015 at the SFIFF.
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EL CORDERO (Juan Francisco Olea 2014)
From Chile, another dark satire about moral confusion. Domingo, a good Christian family man, ostensibly feels no guilt after an accidental homicide and then commits more crimes, seeking -- something. The writing, which gets a bit muddled as the film goes along, keeps us guessing, but it pales compared to Pablo Larrain's brilliant Pinochet-era horror stories starring Alfredo Castro. In competition for the SFIFF narrative feature prize and a directorial debut.
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VERY SEMI-SERIOUS (Leah Wolchok 2015)
A full-length documentary about the cartoonists of The New Yorker (there are several short films I've mentioned before). Somehow this seems like too large a subject ever to be fully covered in a single film, and this one leaves out a lot of history. But it mentions and glimpses quite a number of living cartoonists for the magazine and introduces two young ones, including the luminous Englishman, Edward Steed, pronounced "a genius" by editor Bob Mankoff, for good reason.
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The main SFIFF 2015 awards have been announced.
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Best feature: Sworn Virgin, Laura Bispuri (Italy/Switzerland/Germany/Albania/Kosovo)
Best documentary: Documentary Feature Winner: Western, Bill Ross IV, Turner Ross (USA
Each is with a $10,000 cash prize.
Western is a good choice; it's an excellent documentary. The feature choice, not so good. Of the five I have seen I like the other four better, even the one I hate, at least is impressive (The Tribe); Court is a fine and memorable film about an important subject, and Vincent has great charm and a distinctive touch. However I predicted that Sworn Virgin's subject matter would particularly appeal at this venue.
Theatrical release: Sworn virgin
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SWORN VIRGIN/VERGINE GIURATA (Laura Bispuri 2015)
Opens in NY on april 22, 2016
Village East Cinema
Opens in LA on April 29, 2016
Laemmle Ahrya Fine Arts
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