Abbas Kiarostami

Cinema lost a leading voice when Abbas Kiarostami passed away in 2016. Mr. Kiarostami was one of the genuine greats of cinema. Anyone who started exploring global cinema was bound to come across one of his films at some point in their film paths. The one difference would be that each person would have discovered Mr. Kiarostami via a different film. Many in the west likely first came across his work with the 1990 film CLOSE-UP and others likely found his work after his brilliant film TASTE OF CHERRY won the Palme D’Or at the Cannes film festival in 1997.

However, Abbas Kiarostami was making films long before that. He started off by directing short films and documentaries from the 1970’s onwards. While these earlier works may have been unknown for most of the 1990’s, they started surfacing in the mid 2000’s. These earlier works are extremely valuable in showing he approached his cinema. Early in his career, he worked at the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Adults. This is probably why he is one of those rare directors whose films showed children with genuine warmth, compassion and honesty. In his early short films, children and animals played a big part. In fact, his first ever short film THE BREAD AND ALLEY, a 12 minute short made in 1970 features a boy and a dog.

Right from his first short film, he showed an ability to re-imagine a different way of shooting a scene. He wanted events to flow naturally and the camera to capture reality as it unfolded. The 12 minute short film shows traces of a neo-realist cinema but also an aspect that would come to define his film making style in the 1990’s, a style where the line between fiction and documentary is blurred.

He often used non-actors in his films and at times, it was hard to distinguish real life from fiction in his films. He often had audience guessing on what is real and what is manufactured. The placement of the camera played a big part in this technique and even then, Kiarostami didn’t follow conventional ways. He would mount his camera inside a car such as he did in TEN or have a camera facing an audience watching a film in a movie theatre like in SHIRIN. Except, things were not as what they seem. In SHIRIN, the audience is watching a movie that does not exist and the film is not shot inside a real movie theatre.

In Cinema Scope Issue No. 68, Quintín has noted that Abbas Kiarostami "was trained as a painter and a photographer". This training clearly played a big part in the beautiful landscape and visuals found in many of his films which take place outside the city in stunning Iranian countryside.

Mr. Kiarostami was able to realize his vision while living and working in his home country of Iran. As a result, in a way, he helped put Iranian cinema on the map and was a key part of the new wave of Iranian directors that emerged from the 1990’s onwards.

What is remarkable is that he continued making films in Iran despite the changing political landscape. He was born in 1940 and lived through many of the different political forces that have shaped Iran. Yet, despite the government changes, he was able to continue pushing the boundaries of cinema and art. His films often got to the core of meaning of art and life in general.

Like a true artist, he continued exploring new ways to expand his filmmaking. In 2010, he directed CERTIFIED COPY, shot entirely in Italy, his first film shot outside of Iran. In 2012, he made LIKE SOMEONE IN LOVE shot in Japan and in once again in a different language. These two films marked a new and exciting point in his career. In an interview, Mr. Kiarostami said that many people around the world understood his films via subtitles. So he wanted to understand his own films via subtitles and that explains why these 2 films were shot in a different language.

He was next supposed to work in film set in China. Sadly, that was not to be. It is clear that he had a lot to offer to cinema.

The 2016 short film TAKE ME HOME, shot in Southern Italy, playfully manages to incorporate elements from his cinema. Like his earlier films, there is a little boy and there are some animals. The artistic beauty he found in landscapes are to be found in this film. And the concept of fiction vs reality is also seen. The short appear to be following a soccer ball in a natural manner. However, there is a very clear visual indicator in the film which lets us know what he is really up to. This short was released along with the documentary 76 MINUTES and 15 SECONDS WITH ABBAS KIAROSTAMI, directed by Mr. Kiarostami’s long time collaborator Seifollah Samadian. In this documentary, we get a true sense of how Mr. Kiarostami conceived his shots, how his training as a painter and photographer played a big part in his films. For those who are familiar with his films, it brings a new perspective to view his films. For those who are not familiar with his work, it provides an excellent starting point to see an artist at work.

As it turns out, TAKE ME HOME won’t be the last film of Mr. Kiarostami. Later this year, we will see his final film project getting a release. That film will be the movie event of the year!

Note: both TAKE ME HOME and the documentary 76 MINUTES AND 15 SECONDS were shown by the Calgary Cinematheque as part of a special tribute to Mr. Kiarostami.

THE HUMAN SURGE

THE HUMAN SURGE (2016, Eduardo Williams, Argentina/Brazil/Portugal)

Eduardo Williams’ stunning debut feature takes us on a remarkable journey around the globe, spanning three continents. THE HUMAN SURGE is structured in three parts starting off in Argentina (Buenos Aires) before moving to Mozambique (Maputo) and finishing its whirlwind global tour in the Philippine province of Bohol. In each of its three segments, the film depicts young people who are either trying to make ends meet by taking on different jobs or those who are in between jobs. Technology plays a key part in these different jobs and that also nicely ties in with the film's theme of exploring the impact of the internet and computers in our modern world. The film depicts an entire global cycle of jobs from manufacturing of computer parts all the way to how people use computers and the internet to earn money.

The internet and its wired/wireless network allows people to easily communicate around the world, thereby shrinking our planet. Williams has smartly used this network connectivity and shrinking of the world to depict jaw-dropping original cinematic transitions between the three parts. He has even managed to plug nature and its picturesque landscapes into our wired world. The end result is a film that is never short on movement, as it follows its characters through a network of paths, ranging from almost invisible paths to rugged larger-than-life trails.

Each path and subsequent journey is crafted with its own unique visual technique. The Argentine segment is filmed using 16 mm, while the images in Mozambique are filmed with an inventive mix of a Blackmagic pocket camera and 16mm, and a RED camera captures the tiniest details of the lovely Philippine environment. As a result, each segment has its own distinguishing colour palette and texture which matches the rhythm of the story. In keeping pace with its characters and the story, the camera is never static but hovers and wanders around its characters. In some sequences, the camera is freed from the confines of space and time thereby achieving movements that defy belief.

The end result is a film that takes us on a breathtaking journey of our non-stop, constantly shifting world. Winner of the Golden Leopard award in the Filmmakers of the present category at the Locarno Film Festival, THE HUMAN SURGE signals the arrival of a talented new director.

Note: Cross-published here.

Essential reading about the film:

1. Leo Goldsmith in Cinema Scope

2. Max Nelson in Film Comment

Around the World in 5 Films

Around the World in 5 Films

THE TREASURE will complete Calgary Cinematheque’s cinematic journey across 5 continents in just 5 films. All 5 films are part of the Cinematheque’s Contemporary World Cinema series which kicked off with the Brazilian film SHE COMES BACK ON THURSDAY before traveling to North America with Alex Ross Perry’s QUEEN OF EARTH. Africa was the next stop as British director Ben Rivers’ THE SKY TREMBLES AND THE EARTH IS AFRAID AND THE TWO EYES ARE NOT BROTHERS focused on the beautiful and rugged Moroccan landscape. Asia was next as Hong Sang-soo’s RIGHT NOW, WRONG THEN touched down in South Korea. Finally, the 2015/16 season will conclude with a European stop as Corneliu Porumboiu’s THE TREASURE takes us on an incredible hunt to uncover some precious Romanian treasure.

The 5 films in the 2015/16 Contemporary World Cinema series contain a mix of films from rising masters and established auteurs. The first film in the series, SHE COMES BACK ON THURSDAY, marked the feature film debut of André Novais Oliveira who has already established a signature style with just three short films and one feature. This style features a remarkable blending of documentary and fiction. In SHE COMES BACK ON THURSDAY, André Novais Oliveira acts in the film along with his parents and brother and all four use their real names in the film. However, the four of them are not playing themselves but instead are acting within the framework of fiction. Still, SHE COMES BACK ON THURSDAY is constructed like a documentary, giving attention to tiny details about life and relationships. The close bond between the family members results in scenes which flow effortlessly allowing audience an intimate look at the characters. The everyday sounds that are allowed to flow in the frames recalls Kleber Mendonça Filho’s NEIGHBORING SOUNDS but André Novais Oliveira has crafted his own unique path by opting to show a different side of Brazil from other Brazilian films. The setting of the film in the suburbs of Belo Horizonte showcases a Brazil that is not seen in cinema along with characters that don’t make an appearance in Brazilian films. Finally, the selection of the lovely music makes SHE COMES BACK ON THURSDAY a beautiful poetic film about life, love, death and everything in between.

The second and third films in the series contained works from Alex Ross Perry and Ben Rivers, two exciting and talented filmmakers who have carved their own place in world cinema with just a handful of features.

Alex Ross Perry has not settled for an easy path in his filmmaking journey and has tried to push the boundaries with his films while staying true to independent filmmaking roots. His previous films don’t prepare one for QUEEN OF EARTH which is far darker than his other works. However, there is a very smart progression compared to his previous two films, in terms of the depiction of relationships and also usage of dialogue. In THE COLOR WHEEL, Perry examined relationships between two siblings, neither of whom appear to have any friends. In LISTEN UP PHILLIP, Perry showed the relationship between two people who are dating. With QUEEN OF EARTH, he looks at a relationship between two friends, something he has not examined before. Also, this film has much less dialogue than his previous movies. THE COLOR WHEEL is a dialogue-driven film while LISTEN UP PHILLIP has plenty of voice over narration which lets viewers listen in to the character’s internal thoughts. However, in QUEEN OF EARTH, the dialogue is limited and audience don’t get to listen to the voices in the characters’ heads. Instead, audience have to understand their state of mind by their expressions and body language. This combined with the film’s score and the cinematography gives the film an intense horror/psychological drama feel.

Ben Rivers’ THE SKY TREMBLES AND THE EARTH IS AFRAID AND THE TWO EYES ARE NOT BROTHERS is a fascinating multi-layered structure that draws inspiration from Paul Bowles’ writing. The structure of the film is a nod to what Bowles managed in A Hundred Camels in the Courtyard where Bowles found a common thread to link 4 completely different stories together. In the SKY TREMBLES, Ben Rivers has constructed a film which links together multiple works including a short story, a short film, some documentary footage and an art installation. All these works are seamlessly stitched together in a linear manner. Rivers has managed this by alternating one aspect of Paul Bowles’ short story A Distant Episode. In the short story, the main character is a professor. In the film, the main character is a film director. This change allows Ben Rivers to find a common thread to link the different elements. This is because at the start of THE SKY TREMBLES, we see the filmmaker Oliver Laxe, scouting for locations in Morocco and attempting to complete a gruelling film shoot. Laxe is a real filmmaker and the scenes we see are actual footage from his upcoming second feature. And then at some point in THE SKY TREMBLES, Oliver Laxe stops shooting his film and steps into Paul Bowles’ story, resulting in a series of remarkable events.

The final two films in the Contemporary World Cinema series are by Hong Sang-soo and Corneliu Porumboiu, two established auteurs who are among the best Contemporary world film directors working right now.

Love and relationships are two common elements found in Hong Sang-soo’s films with food and alcohol being vital to his film’s flow. Characters often gather at a social gathering where lots of food and alcohol is to be found. Alcohol is a key ingredient in his films, particularly the drink of soju which serves as lubricant in allowing the character’s true feelings to be revealed in a natural manner. In his last few films, Hong Sang-soo has used repetition as a powerful device. He has either shown the same event from different perspectives or repeated the same segment with slight variations. All these elements are found in RIGHT NOW, WRONG THEN which is divided into 2 films, shown from different perspectives and with slight variations. Each film has its own title with the first film called ‘RIGHT THEN, WRONG NOW’ while the second film is ‘RIGHT NOW, WRONG THEN’. The alternate titles and the unfolding of events allow audience to select which film they prefer, and in a way, the audience selection also shows the manner in which they prefer to live their own lives.

Corneliu Porumboiu has directed five feature films, one of them being a documentary, yet all are stellar films that have garnered critical acclaim and multiple awards. Porumboiu announced his arrival on the world stage a decade ago when his feature film debut 12:08 EAST OF BUCHAREST won 2 awards at Cannes 2006. That debut contained two elements that have become part of his signature usage, history and humour. Porumboiu has found a unique way to examine Romania’s history with a brilliant usage of humour. In Porumboiu’s hands, scenes which contain characters reading from a dictionary, filling forms at a police station or watching TV become riveting scenes which are infused with humour and provide valuable insight into human nature. Porumboiu has been adding layers to his films since his debut and is constantly looking for new ways to expand the frame of cinema. This is highlighted by THE TREASURE which contains his signature elements of humour and examination of Romanian history but is also a twist on a fable, while providing a key commentary on the modern financial crisis. In just a single effortless sequence, Porumboiu shows some individual decisions that were at the core of the financial crisis. However, Corneliu Porumboiu uses that scene to kick-start a sequence of events resulting in an entertaining cinematic experience.

The 5 films of the Cinematheque’s Contemporary World Cinema series made their international debut at various film festivals in 2015. All are among some of the best films of 2015 but these films are competing in an ever-decreasing cinematic space. The regular theatrical release schedule in most North American cities continues to be dominated by commercial studio films while independent Canadian and foreign cinema struggles to get screen time. If a city does not have a Film Festival, a Cinematheque or an Arthouse cinema, there will be few chances to see independent and foreign films in a cinema. This is where the Calgary Cinematheque’s Contemporary World Cinema series is vital as it showcases some of the best films from around the world, works that would normally be never seen in this city. After just two seasons, the Calgary Cinematheque’s Contemporary World Cinema series has depicted smart works by directors from Brazil, Canada, Iran, Mexico, Philippines, Romania, South Korea, Taiwan, UK and USA. There are many more talented auteurs from around the world to be discovered, some of whom will be featured in next season’s Contemporary World series.

Note: Cross-published on the Calgary Cinematheque's website.

Spaghetti Westerns

Spaghetti Westerns: Bounty Hunters, Bullets and Blood Money

by Sachin Gandhi

The Calgary Cinematheque is pleased to present a six film spotlight on Spaghetti Westerns, a sub-genre of Westerns. Spaghetti Westerns have had a long road to recognition in the film world. The films were looked upon unfavourably when they first came out. American critics looked down upon these films and considered them fake and used the term “Spaghetti Westerns” in a negative manner to differentiate these Cinecittà Studios (Rome) productions from traditional Westerns. However, over the decades, the sub-genre has been closely studied and its filmmaking virtues have been acknowledged. The films may have been spawned from Westerns but they developed their own visual language, soundtracks, distinct characters, themes and iconography.  These unique characteristics of the sub-genre have in turn influenced diverse filmmakers over the decades. In fact, one can draw a line from Spaghetti Westerns to the cinema of John Woo, Johnnie To, Takashi Miike, Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriquez. Also, Spaghetti Westerns injected new life into traditional Westerns which were falling out of fashion in the late 1950’s. As a result, Spaghetti Westerns have created a unique and influential place in cinematic history. The Calgary Cinematheque has selected films that give a taste of the sub-genre, depicting its relevant themes and symbols while showcasing some of Spaghetti Western’s famous directors/writers/actors. Even though there were as many as 500 Spaghetti Westerns made between 1964-73, the sub-genre is still mostly associated with Sergio Leone whose A Fistful of Dollars (1964) is the first Spaghetti Western. The Calgary Cinematheque has included films from two other famous Sergios’, Corbucci and Sollima, while the selections range from the lone wolf (Django) looking for revenge (Death Rides a Horse) and money (The Bounty Killer) to political films (Compañeros, A Bullet for the General). The selected films also cover the gambit of characters from bounty hunters (The Bounty Killer, The Big Gundown), a gun-carrying priest (Klaus Kinski in A Bullet for the General), corrupt general, double crossing gunmen to crazed machine gun toting characters.

Excessive violence, bullets, blood and dynamite, that were central to Spaghetti Westerns, also set them apart from traditional Westerns. In addition, the camera shots, background score, themes and symbols were distinct as well. For example, in Westerns, heroes and villains were clearly identified by the colours of their hats. Heroes wore a white hat while the villains a black hat. However, in Spaghetti Westerns, the main characters displayed no moral compass and were never afraid to kill, either for gold, revenge or political cause. As a result, these main characters were not pure heroes but anti-heroes who rode in the grey middle line away from concepts of pure goodness and honesty. These anti-heroes often donned black apparel (Django, Sabata) in the form of a black hat, poncho or vest. The Spaghetti Western characters also appeared rugged, unshaven and sunburnt, in complete contrast to the clean looking, well dressed heroes of traditional westerns. This look was in keeping with the harsh landscape the Spaghetti characters found themselves in. Their sunburnt faces perfectly illustrated the heat-packed land they traveled through and their unkempt look, with dirty clothing, represented the lack of time to clean themselves as they were either being hunted or were on the hunt. Such naturalistic looks for the characters were not a coincidence in Spaghetti Westerns but instead owe inspiration to Italian neo-realist cinema. Admittedly, Spaghetti Westerns created their own meta-world apart from Westerns or Italian life. However, elements of reality did creep in the story lines such as the aspect of a family clan (a nod towards Southern Italian families), political references (corrupt rulers/generals) or religious symbols peppered throughout the films, such as the cross, church, and priests (some of them famously turned killers).

In terms of major plots, Spaghetti Westerns can be considered to fall into three camps -- bounty hunter films, revenge tales and political stories. Sergio Leone’s films focused on the bounty hunter, in the quest for money, which was an end goal in itself. The second major plot revolved around revenge killing, to avenge a family or loved one’s murder. These revenge killings were often depicted with savage violence, an eye for an eye taken to its bloody conclusion. In the later phase of the sub-genre, political plots were incorporated in the stories resulting in films which featured a revolution and liberation of people from an oppressive ruler/general/family clan. These films were identified as Zapata Westerns and their stories took the side of the oppressed against the hierarchy, thereby resonating with the common man. This also helps explain the popularity of Spaghetti Westerns with the masses who flocked to see the films in their heyday.

The Calgary Cinematheque Spotlight has selected works which expand on these different themes and symbols of the sub-genre. Corbucci’s Django stars Franco Nero, a vital actor of the sub-genre, dressed in all black carrying that well-known coffin behind him. Django exemplified the violent world that later became commonplace in the sub-genre. Eugenio Martín’s The Bounty Killer shows a savage world where killing is normal because that is the means by which bounty hunters earn their living. Corbucci’s Compañeros is his take on the Zapata Western and impressively brings together Franco Nero with Jack Palance and Fernando Rey (known for his work in Luis Buñuel’s films and The French Connection). Clint Eastwood is a renowned association with Spaghetti Westerns but Lee Van Cleef is not far behind. Lee Van Cleef made small appearances in many Westerns (The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, High Noon) but caught the eye in Leone’s For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly before he went onto carve his own name in the sub-genre. Two of Lee Van Cleef’s memorable films Death Rides a Horse and The Big Gundown are part of this Spotlight. The Big Gundown is also famously associated with director Sergio Sollima and writer Franco Solinas. Solinas made his name as a writer in Gillo Pontecorvo’s The Battle of Algiers and Francesco Rosi’s Salvatore Giuliano, two landmark films that are firmly rooted in political violence. Solinas was able to transfer this political depiction into the four Spaghetti Westerns he wrote, two of which are shown as part of the Cinematheque Spotlight. The Big Gundown is the first Spaghetti Western that Solinas worked on and he built on top of this film’s Mexican aspect by crafting a fully developed Zapata Western in A Bullet for the General, an essential film that shows how the sub-genre incorporated political elements within its framework.

This Spotlight features something for all films fans. For seasoned film lovers, there is a chance to discover some new Spaghetti Western films and see them in rare formats, such as Death Rides a Horse in 35 mm. For newcomers, this spotlight is the perfect way to be introduced to the sub-genre and experience the origins of many contemporary films.

Cross-published on Calgary Cinematheque's website. The 6 film spotlight runs from Jan 14 - March 31, 2016.