34th Fajr International Film Festival

The 34th Fajr International Film Festival is set to begin today in Tehran, under the supervision of Reza Mirkarimi, renowned Iranian film writer and director. The event will last until the 25th of April. This annual event succeeded to secure for itself, thanks to the success of past editions, an important place in the world cultural map, achieving a leading role in shaping cinematic tradition in the Middle East and south-western Asia.

A total of 15 films, 12 being foreign, will compete for the festival's most sought after awards, Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Actor and Actress, and the Special Award. The foreign films are:
1944 (Elmo Nuganen ; Estonia / Finland)
Amama, When a Tree Falls (Asier Altuna ; Spain)
El Clasico (Halkawt Mustafa ; Iraq)
Walking Distance (Alejandro Guzman Alvarez ; Mexico)
Frenzy (Emin Alper ;Turkey)
Dawn (Laila Lakalnina ; Estonia / Poland / Lithuania)
Song of Songs (Eva Neymann ; Ukraine)
Rams (Grimur Hakonarson ; Ireland / Denmark / Norway / Poland)
The Treasure (Corneliu Porumboiu ; Romania / France)
Guarani (Paraguay, Argentina)
Norfolk (Martin Radich ; United Kingdom)
I’m a Teacher (Russia)

Брат (Brother) [Russia / 1997]

Sergey Bodrov Jr. (1971–2002) plays the role of a young man named Danila Bagrov with a predisposition for lawlessness but nonetheless possessing a degree of morality somewhat superior to most of the people he comes in contact with. He sets out to find his brother in Leningrad, a man which according to his mother is "her only hope" but in truth is a local gangster and killer. Apparently, their father was a thief who eventually died in prison. Not the kind of movie that will stir many laughs or philosophical discussions but it will make you addicted to the atmosphere (aided by a wonderful soundtrack by Nautilus Pompilius) if you have an interest for this kind of cinema. The director is Aleksey Balabanov.

You can see the full movie below (with English subtitles) brought to you by TheMakiNau through Youtube.

Movie

Music

As a bonus for my readers I have posted bellow a song from the soundtrack by Nautilus Pompilius. Zver (Beast):


Lyrics:

я смотpю в темноту я вижу огни это где-то в степи полыхает пожаp я вижу огни вижу пламя костpов это значит где-то здесь скpывается звеpь я гнался за ним столько лет столько зим я нашел его здесь в этой степи слышу вой под собой вижу слезы в глазах это значит что звеpь почувствовал стpах я смотpю в темноту я вижу огни это значит что звеpь почувствовал стpах он я знаю не спит слишком сильная боль все гоpит все кипит пылает огонь я даже знаю как болит у звеpя в гpуди он pевет он хpипит мне знаком этот кpик я кpужу в темноте там где слышиться смех это значит что тепеpь звеpю конец я не буду ждать утpа чтоб не видеть как он пpобудившись ото снастанет дpугим я не буду ждать утpа чтоб не тpатить больше сил смотpи на звезду - она тепеpь твоя искpы тают в ночи звезды светят в пути я лечу и мне гpустно в этой степи он уже кpепко спит слишком сладкая боль не гоpит не гоpит утихает огонь когда утpо взойдет он с последней звездой поднимется в путь полетит вслед за мной когда утpо взошло успокоилась ночь не гpозила ничем лишь отпpавилась пpочь он еще кpепко спал когда слабая дpожь мелькнула в гpуди с неба вылился дождь

I look into the darkness, I see lights. It is a fire blazing somewhere in the steppe. I see lights, I see flames of bonfires. This means that here hides a beast. I chased him for so many years. I have found him here, in this steppe. I hear him howl, I see tears in his eyes. This means that the beast feels fear. I look into the darkness, I see lights, This means that somewhere here hides the beast. I know he is not sleeping, the pain is too strong, Everything is burning and boiling inside, the fire is burning. I even know how it hurts in the beast's chest, He roars, he croaks, I know this cry. I'm circling in the darkness, where laughter is heard, This means that it's all over for the beast now. I will not wait for the morning, not to see how he, Waking from sleep, becomes different. I will not wait for the morning, not to waste energy, Look at the star - it is now yours. Sparks are melting into the night, the stars are shining on the way, I'm flying, and I feel sad in this steppe. He is fast asleep already - the pain is too sweet, The fire is not burning anymore, it is dying down. When the morning comes, with the last star He will rise to go, will fly following me. When the morning came, the night calmed down, It did not threaten with anything, just went away. He was still fast asleep, when a slight shiver Flashed across his chest, the sky poured rain. Translation: kovideo.net

The Rum Diary

In a very vintage and alcohol vapor filled atmosphere of 60's Puerto Rico, an unsuccessful writer sets out to try to become somewhat successful by joining a rag tag band of journalists at a local daily newspaper. I found the first fifteen minutes abounding with clichés and characters drowned in their own self pity, guides to a world on the brink of collapse. Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) is the writer in question and he will experience all sides of the island, from a five star hotel to prison, from flirting with the fiancée of a big shot to visiting a hermaphrodite witch doctor.

Leaving all the eccentricities aside, this movie deals with a fundamental (and growing) problem, the divide between the rich and the poor and how these two worlds rarely meet, separated by fences and guards or by fear and ignorance. When they indeed meet it's all very "Nitzschean", the powerful rule the weak, sometimes the powerful are the ones with the money, sometimes not.

A great movie overall, you need to see it.


I find this trailer not very representative but we have to make do with what we have.

Directed by Bruce Robinson ; Based on "The Rum Diary" by Hunter S. Thompson ; Starring: Johnny Depp, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Rispoli, Amber Heard, Richard Jenkins, Giovanni Ribis ; Year: 2011

Tetro [Movie / 2009]

A couple of weeks ago I watched this movie called Tetro and I found it absolutely great. To be honest it's one of those movies I can't write about, by itself it gives birth to artistic creativity, not critique. The film noir elements are really something I admire (go to: The man who wasn't there) and the fact that the main character is an unsuccessful writer definitely sparked my interest. Vincent Galla is really suited for the role of Tetro. The story is something like this, Tetro, the writer, living the classical life of an artist barely coping with his genius, gets a visit from his brother and in a couple of days things start to boil. Tetro has completely broken all relations with his family, more exactly his father, and finds his younger brother a not so desirable presence. The moment when Bennie, the younger brother, finds Tetro's unfinished book, his own questions start to be answered and truth finds it's way into the lives of both. The director is Francis Ford Coppola. Soundtrack by Dante Anzolini.


Track 2: Love, Angie. Bernardo Monk on saxophone.

Other Movies / دیگر فیلمها

12 Angry Men [Movie / 1957]

Out of all the movies that are worth watching there are some that manage to climb to the top without any special effects and extravagant props and locations, that rely strictly on dialogue, plot and actors, 12 Angry Men (1957) is such a movie. The whole action takes place in a single room (without counting the bathroom and the short introductory part that takes place in the court room. The jury has to decide the fate of a boy who supposedly killed his violent father.

The reason I recommend this movie is because out of the 12 jurors, only one sees the gravity of the situation, only one is willing to discuss about the case while the others just want to get it over with. There are people who can't get over their own experiences or have preconceived notions, there are people who simply don't care or who are cowards... the movie in a way describes a whole community/nation, even our entire species, in the face of a hard decision. The first one who questions a majority is initially perceived as a madman because, well, "the evidence is clear". He (the first dissenter, played by Henry Fonda), was in fact the only one who either succeeded in looking at the situation in an objective manner, or felt of the boy's drama as rather familiar, I am inclined to go with the first possibility. What we can learn from this movie is not that the American judiciary system is the best (although we can not rule out this intention, we are speaking of an American movie after all) but that we may have barriers that hinder clear thinking and not even know about them. We should daily make mental exercises when we distance ourselves from the world and see it from the sky, and looking down all problems are not problems, but possibilities. We will only see reality when our eyes, hearts and minds are clear.

The movies is directed by Sydney Lumet and written by Reginald Rose.
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The Man Who Wasn't There (movie)

Imagine a barber living in a small American town in the year 1949, he has a wife and they live in a small medium class home just perfect for two people, nothing extraordinary here. It won't be long till you will discover that he is a little different from the others, silently observing everything and everyone. In my opinion he could even represent lucidity, never in the whole movie do you see him drinking alcohol although he is a heavy smoker. When learning of his wife's secret he doesn't react in any way and after helping his wife's boss with some dirty laundry he returns to normal like nothing happened. Ed, this being his name, is a difficult one to describe, and adding the fact that I'm trying not to divulge too much of the movie is even harder. I wouldn't go so far as calling Ed autistic, his lack of talking originates in his strong desire to talk only when he has something to say, when it comes to his apparent lack of emotions... well... you will see close to the end that he finally finds someone who is actually on his mind and tries to help without taking advantage.

This 2001 movie was directed by  Joel and Ethan Coen, the ones who also directed The Big Lebowski and No Country For Old Men so you should prepare yourself for a unique cinematic experience. Some of the main actors are Billy Bob Thornton, Frances McDormand, James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), Tony Shalhoub and Michael Badalucco.

Enjoy the movie, under the trailer there is a link to a torrent file, this is strictly for educational purposes. Enjoy. Help to keep knowledge and the Internet free.




Torrent 720p

A separation / Losers' Club

Image from the movie Losers' Club

Recently i had the possibility to see two great movies: "A Separation", Iran, 2011, directed by Asghar Farhadi, starring Peyman Moadi and Leila Hatami ; and "Losers' Club", Turkey, 2011, directed by Tolga Ornek and starring Nejat Isler, Yigit Ozsener and Ahu Turkpence. The two movies are quite different from one another, although there are some important elements that unite them, the ideas of loneliness, separation and their opposites. Even thou both countries are mostly Islamic the fact that Turkey is secular can easily be seen. Losers' Club nonetheless puts into discussion culture and censorship. In "A Separation" we are immersed into a truly theocratic society with a strict (although incomparably softer than in many Middle Eastern countries) sharia law.

What stuck with me after seeing the Iranian film was that family is important, very important... when you add children into the equation things take a drastic turn... into the better in my opinion. The starting point with the two wanting to get a divorce, in fact she wanting to get divorced slowly makes room for other issues, only to be remembered in the end of the movie when, in fact, I even hoped the two will not separate. I will not explain the entire movie, but the decisions Nader will make along the way from Simin wanting to get a divorce but being denied to Simin being granted the divorce will show that he, Nader, while not having the power to let go, will, inevitably let go.

Loser's Club is a totally different ballpark, in fact it's not even the same sport, here we have the story of two typical rock n' roll free spirits discussing things, with no form of censorship on their nighttime radio show. Both of them have their own businesses, Kaan has an unsuccessful publishing company while Mete runs a pub and ultimately a shop. The two will go through a series of very interesting events and the overall comical nature of the movie will surely give you something to smile at while not neglecting the pop-philosophy foundation. I admire Tolga Ornek for this masterpiece of Turkish cinema.




Song title: Yalnizlik Omur Boyu, form the soundtrack of Losers' Club.