Last updated
May 11 2011

Why films on TV in their original widescreen ratio is good for you

News & Views News Archive Announcements All About Us Email Dom Write 4 DVDfever Competitions Music Charts Music Chart Archive Games Chart Archive Cinema Chart Archive Cinema Releases Cinema Reviews Press Releases TV Issues Frank Sidebottom's World Wide Shed R2 DVD Reviews Blu-ray Reviews HD-DVD Reviews R1 DVD Reviews R3-6 DVD Reviews DVD List Xbox 360 Reviews CD Reviews Audiobook Reviews PS2 Reviews PSP Reviews Xbox Reviews Gamecube Revs GBA Reviews PC Reviews Hardware Revs Concert Reviews Video Reviews Comedy Reviews Book Reviews Screenplay Reviews Movie Downloads Interviews TV Shows PSX Reviews N64 Reviews Dreamcast Revs Laserdisc Revs Short Stories DVDs In Brief Right To Reply Why Widescreen? DVD Links Music Links WS Video List WS PAL LD List Me and my Aortic Valve!

Helen M Jerome brings you

London Film Festival 2008 Preview... Okay, it’s that time of year again. Invest in a family-size bucket of popcorn, get out your highlighter pen, put some extra dosh on your Oystercard, and maybe even take some time off work. At first glance the London Film Festival programme seems just a tad predictable, but I beseech you, seek and ye shall find. There are some mainstream, multiplex-destined crowd-pleasers and some almost-too-good-to-be-true treats in store for the eagle-eyed festival-goer in 2008. And we’ll mark your card for you – subjectively, of course. Check out Helen M Jerome’s hearty recommendations, add in some of your own detective work, and the result should be two weeks of big screen bliss.

Tip 1: Big Hitters They will be all over your local cinemas like a rash pretty soon, but this time round it looks like the opening and closing films might just live up to the considerable hype. Curtain-raiser Frost/Nixon, directed by Ron Howard and starring our chameleon-like Michael Sheen as David Frost and Frank Langella as Tricky Dicky, should follow in the footsteps of the smash hit play that spawned it. And closing the entire festival is Danny Boyle’s Mumbai-set Slumdog Millionaire, which may take the director out of his comfort zone, but proves that he’s still a great storyteller. If you can prise your eyes away from the current presidential election run-up, it’s worth looking to see how Oliver Stone and Josh Brolin cope with directing and acting in W, the unlikely tale of Stone’s contemporary, George W Bush. As a longtime Woody Allen fan, this critic finds it hard to get excited about his current work. Indeed, my heart sinks at how disappointing his latest fare has been, but I would love it (Kevin Keegan style), if Vicky Cristina Barcelona proves me wrong. Quantum of Solace, the new Bond flick, will get the crowds in to see Daniel Craig versus Mathieu Amalric. Steven Soderbergh’s marathon-length Che biopic, starring Benicio del Toro, looks promising – as does the last-minute festival addition from Spike Lee, Miracle of St Anna. And there’s a big West End premiere for the family film The Secret of Moonacre, from the director who brought us The Road to Terabitha.

Tip 2: Flexibility Chances are that if the film you’d walk over broken glass to see is sold out in the evening, there will be a daytime screening coming along in a day or two. Double-check the listings – and even if you find the film is sold out, there may be standby tickets if you queue up and are patient. And it can work out cheaper in the daytime if you invest in a bundle of weekday matinee vouchers – five cost £35 and ten just £65. Just pop into the Leicester Square ticket booth or one of the festival box offices.

Tip 3: Take a chance. There’s nothing as satisfying as ‘discovering’ a new talent or seeing it flower. Or simply stumbling across a movie that knocks your socks off. And imagine how smug you’ll feel when you recommend a film that your friends won’t be able to see for another few months, or even a year. I’m going out on a limb here – and so should you. You should on no account miss The Baader Meinhof Complex, a subtle, involving epic from Uli Edel that deals with the terrorist cell that became a force in Germany in the 1970s and was glossed over in Spielberg’s Munich. It features remarkable performances all round, but especially from the charismatic Moritz Bleibtreu as Andreas Baader and Martina Gedeck (from The Lives of Others) as Ulrike Meinhof. Almost in the same league, but perhaps just a teeny bit too much in love with its style and itself, is Paolo Sorrentino’s follow-up to Family Friend and Consequences of Love: Il Divo. Another epic focusing on political machinations that might have passed us by in Britain, this examines the fallout when the paths of the Italian government and the mafia cross during Andreotti’s seven terms as Prime Minister. Toni Servillo is impeccable as Andreotti, and Sorrentino is clearly becoming one of Europe’s most distinctive filmmakers. European, and particularly French cinema seems to be entering another rich renaissance right now, epitomised by Agnes Jaoui’s grown-up tale Let’s Talk About The Rain, Arnaud Desplechin’s A Christmas Tale (starring Catherine Deneuve and the ubiquitous Mathieu Amalric), Laurent Cantet’s Palm d’Or winner, The Class and as an outside bet, the debut feature, 57000km Between Us (Amalric again!).

Italy delivers with Quiet Chaos, Black Sea and A Perfect Day; and Belgium with the brilliant new Dardennes brothers’ film The Silence of Lorna. Then there’s Slovakia’s Blind Loves; Denmark’s Flame & Citron, and The Candidate; Iceland’s darkly funny Country Wedding; Austria’s Revanche; and from the Czechs, Of Parents and Children, and The Karamazovs. What about the Brits? Hunger, by artist Steve McQueen is meant to be strong stuff, covering Bobby Sands’ hunger strike in the Maze Prison. Michael Winterbottom’s Genova and Richard Eyre’s The Other Man should prove that we can do grown-up almost as well as the French. Terence Davies’ short but heartfelt tribute to his hometown, Of Time And The City is a must-see, and the likes of Telstar, 1234, Helen, Incendiary and I Know You Know look very promising. Further afield, North America brings classy and indie goodies in equal measure. Check out Atom Egoyan’s Adoration, broad Steve Coogan satire Hamlet 2, documentaries Religulous and American Teen, the delightful Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York. Mexico is always ripe with new talents in directing and acting – so make a beeline for The Desert Within and Parque Via. There’s also some promising stuff coming out of China, like The Warlords, plus Korea’s latest sensation, The Good, The Bad, The Weird. And Egypt’s Hassan and Morcos, and the Lebanese thriller Beirut Open City are both worth investigating.

Tip 4: There aren’t many movies where I would say wait for the DVD to come out, or perhaps even hold off until it’s on telly, but Tyson isn’t really a must-see unless you’re obsessed with the rise and fall of the once-great boxer in his own words. Similarly, Gonzo, about Hunter S Thompson, could also disappoint those outside the maverick journalist’s core fan-base. Check it all out on: bfi.org.uk/lff, or call 020 7928 3232.

Review copyright © Helen M Jerome 2008.

As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B 37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.

PC games reviewed by the editor are on: