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11th Festival of European Films
11 november - 2 december 2005
festival on wheels: ankara, bursa, izmir, kars

europe europe

The Festival of European Films on Wheels presents, as usual, feature films produced in 2004-2005 from all around Europe to the viewers under the tile of Europe Europe. This section consisting of films selecting from a wide spectrum of productions from Danemark to Hungary brings together films of both directors already included in previous years' programs and promising talents. This section has been made possible with the valuable contributions of Czech Embassy, Danish Embassy, Hungarian Embassy, Swiss Embassy and Austrian Cultural Institute.

DARK HORSE VOKSNE MENNESKER dagur kári

Dark Horse, a black & white production realised in 2005 by the Icelandic director Dagur Kári born in 1973 was awarded the Best Motion Picture in European Film Festival in Brussels. Dagur Kári whose Noi Albinoi which was granted many awards and screened during the 9th Festival relates a man who doesn't have any official registration record, who doesn't pay his debts and the penalties infliged upon him, who doesn't ask for more than half litre of gas and who has developed a philosophy to live as an outcast.

LOST AND FOUND Stefan Arsenijević, Nadejda Koseva, Mait Laas, Kornél Mundruczó, Cristian Mungiu, Jasmila Žbanić

Six young filmmakers from Eastern Europe seeking a place in the contemporary world after the collapse of the communist block display their own thoughts. A film full of joy of life, containing a certain sense of humor which is proper of Eastern Europe, and consisting of images captured by the said filmmakers from Serbia-Montenegro, Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Romania and Bosnia Herzegovina.

WRONG SIDE UP PRIBEHY OBYCEJNEHO SILENSTVI petr zelenka

Former navigator Petr works reloading freight at Prague airport and he would like to get his fiancee Jana back. Petr also has problems with his parents – mainly with his energetic mother who fights for world peace. Petr's increasingly cheerless father David, who spends most of his time staring at the bubles rising from his bottle of beer, meets the young sculptress Sylvie. Petr's chief keeps a list of items his wife has thrown at him and falls in love with a department store mannequin which is destroyed by his jealous wife. Petr Zelenka has adapted his own successful stage play Tales of Common Insanity to create an intelligent, bittersweet comedy about people whose behaviour is determined by attempts to rid themselves of any kind of normal form of loneliness.

FALLEN KRIŠANA fred kelemen

“Out of light and shadow, voices and sounds, a fascinating world enfolds, which shows us the hero's inner desperation with a burning intensity. Through the masterful simplicity and clarity of the story, the sparse beauty of the images, full of contrast and breathing time, which give the characters a dignity and a humanity, and through the artistic purity, which reminds us of Bresson's works, or Bergman's early works, the inner drama of protagonists of this bold film about guilt and forgiveness, which leaves everything fashionable and ordinary far behind, is transformed into hope and perhaps even salvation. With Krisana, Fred Kelemen has enriched his work, which stands alone in the German cinema landscape, with a further cinematographic masterpiece.” Neues Deutschland

CACHE michael haneke
Haneke who has been awarded the Best Director Prize at the latest Cannes Film Festival describes the current social circumstance with regard to the fears fed by the inconsciousness of the first world without making any concession to his own film aesthetics. Georges, who has been regularly receiving packages containing secretly taken photographs of him and his family, has been declined by the police officials when he asks for protection for he has not been threatened in a concrete way. Georges finds out that he has been in a real trouble when he gets that the mentioned photographs have become more and more personal. The film achieves a stabilized level of tension, let alone its masterful editing.

THE KUKUM KUKUMI isa qosja

In the days following the entrance of NATO troops into Kosovo, with the signing of the military treaty in Kumanovo, Serb guards stationed at a mental institution desert and flee. The staff of the institution joins them and thus the patients are left with no supervision. The sudden freedom lets the patients attempt to make their dreams come true, but they are confronted with the realities of the outside world. Kukumi was awarded the Special Jury Prize at the 11th Sarajevo Film Festival held in August 2005.

THE MASTER MISTRZ piotr trzaskalski

Alexander Sapatin, a middle-aged Russian knife-thrower, tours the Polish provinces with a circus. One day, after going berserk while, he is thrown out of the circus and thus forced to go on alone. He meets Angela, who becomes his assistant, and is later joined by a young accordionist. Their show becomes a great success in the small tourist towns. The greatest attraction is his usage of supernatural power during his act, which only happens when he is drunk, even though alcohol has a dark side, making him aggressive and extremely unpleasant. Alexander getting to know innocent young Anna seems to let down his defences. Piotr Trzaskalski might be remembered as the director of Edi presented within the frame of the 9th Festival.

THE PORCELAIN DOLL A PORCELÁNBABA péter gárdos

There was once the Farm. Somewhere in Hungary. More precisely: in Europe. Even more precisely: on planet Earth. Farm folk, who are amiable and simple yet cunning lived here on this Farm. From time to time strangers come to the Farm. And it is than that all hell always breaks loose. Because the strangers have also brought death with them. And destruction. And hate. And jealousy. And vanity. And shame. And lies. On this Farm strangers always just cause trouble... An extraordinary film, peppered with mystic elements by Péter Gárdos, received the prizes for the Best director and the Best Male Performance at the 36th week of Hungarian films.

THE CITY OF THE SUN SLUNECNÍ STÁT martin sulík

The town of Ostrava. Labourers Karel, Vinco, Tomas and Milan have just been laid off. Anger or despair is pointless: the four friends decide to start up a business. They get some money together and buy an old truck from their former employers. However, their initial optimism soon turns to disappointment. The City of the Sun received the Golden Kingfisher Prize at the Finale Pilzen Film Festival. He already figured in the Festival program both with his films Orbis Pictus and The Land.

ONE LONG WINTER WITHOUT FIRE TOUT UN HIVER SANS FEU greg zglinski
The muted winter landscapes of the Swiss Jura mountains mingle fire and ice, mourning and music to interweave two stories of life and love as delicate as the falling snow. The desperate silent tragedy of Jean and Laure, still in shock at the loss of their little girl in a terrible barn fire, plunges the couple into a bleak endless winter of unspeakable grief. The director, one time student of the world known Kieslowski at the prestigious film school of Lodz, received many awards, including the Venice Film Festival.

“Based on the theme of a return to life after terrible mourning, Greg Zglinski, a young Swiss director of Polish origin, has made quite a masterpiece. It is unquestionable the Best Swiss feature since Höhenfeuer, 20 years ago.” Le Temps

VILLA PARANOIA erik clausen

Down-at-heel actress Anna is having no luck finding decent roles, and her more successful friend, Olga, wants her out of the house. When chicken farmer Jorgen offers Anna a live-in job taking care of his elderly father, Walentin, she accepts the chance to take a break and recover her self-esteem. The multihyphenate Clausen plays Jorgen as if his frozen exterior can no longer withstand the mounting pressures inside, capturing the urge for expression in a country renowned for its unemotional front. The film was awarded the FIPRESCI Prize of Film Critics in Taormina.