Great Expectations Cannes - Day 10
I am writing this Great Expectation thing when I am feeling low. And it is James Gray’s THE IMMIGRANT (working title: LOW LIFE/insert: poetic justice) from the Official Competition. Gray is a master of neo-classicism, able to twist the ‘70s crime tragedy à la Coppola with the pen of a Russian writer and the light of a Renaissance painter. Just pick THE YARDS or WE OWN THE NIGHT. THE IMMIGRANT (previously titled THE NIGHTINGALE) is a new territory for him: a period piece (New York in the twenties) and a woman (Marion Cotillard) as the main character in his manly world. I expect drama, skillful shots, and some grainy image. A trusted acquaintance promised me something as heavy as THE YARDS, some beautiful dark matter that it is impossible to fully digest right after the screening. My main regret? I will not be in Cannes to check these many shades of Gray.
–Léo Soesanto who writes for Les Inrockuptibles (except for Festivalists), plus selects for Cannes Critics’ Week and is the artistic director of the Bordeaux International Independent Film Festival
Erik Matti is the crazy, unmatchable king of Pinoy B movies, with a resume that includes such gems as the Third World Spider Man-spoof GAGAMBOY or the outrageous erotic drama PROSTI. Venturing in cinematic territories close to Johnnie To’s, he could have set a landmark in Filipino genre cinema with ON THE JOB (Directors’ Fortnight).
–Paolo Bertolin is a consultant and a former member of the selection committee at Venice International Film Festival with his specialty being Asian cinema. As a film critic and journalist, he has written for Il Manifesto, Cineforum, Segnocinema, Cahiers du Cinéma, Positif, Senses of Cinema, and many others.