Gothamist: Tribeca Film Festival Award Winners

joejenkins

Sun, 01 May 2005 11:33:42 -0500

Best film I saw was A Sidewalk Astronomer. The audience was riveted. I know some volunteers who switched their responsibilities so that they could see it. Amazing man is featured, John Dobson.

Charmaine Stanley

Mon, 17 May 2004 00:17:54 -0500

An Israeli contributor (positively) reviewed Arna's Children in the magazine of which I am editor, so I decided to go myself and see the North American premiere of the film in Toronto. The film is a window on the people behind the daily news. We often hear Israeli violence explained as Israel's right to defend itself. However, when we see terrorists killing Israeli civilians in Tel Aviv, or freedom fighters battling Israeli soldiers in Jenin, we seldom have a chance to understand who they are, where they came from, why they are fighting, or how a laughing child performing in a play with his friends grows up to engage in these actions. The film is not hateful, anti-Semitic or anti-Israeli, nor does it encourage or condone violence or terrorism. To come away with such an impression misses the point of the film. Going to the theatre with an open mind helps us to bridge a gap; to understand the anguish of the Palestinians and how their suffering, humiliation, lack of dignity, lack of freedom and disempowerment lead to the creation of resistance fighers, suicide bombers and terrorists. The director does not blame the latter on "Jews" (or Israelis or Zionists) en masse, but as it is indisputably the result of Israel's occupation and the brutal way in which it is carried out, this is reflected in the film. Indeed there are other reactions to the situation besides terror. There are also other reactions to Israel's situation besides demolishing homes; preventing Palestinians at times from reaching hospitals and life-saving medical treatment; setting up checkpoints where Palestinians wait for hours, making it excruciatingly difficult to reach work or school nearby; diverting scarce water resources to Israeli neighbourhoods from the West Bank which scarcely needs it for personal use and a suffering agricultural industry; imposing crippling closures that choke an already impoverished Palestinian economy; placing neighbourhoods under lengthy periods of curfew; rolling tanks past Palestinians in their own neighbourhoods and treating them with a complete lack of dignity in their own country; assassinating leaders; torturing prisoners not yet even convicted of any crime; and shooting at militants with reckless disregard for the life of nearby civilians. Yet this is not the point either. It's not about assigning blame. It's about understanding where the violence comes from and that - let's be realistic - given what the Palestinians have been subjected to, violence is inevitable. None of us lives in a turn-the-other-cheek utopia. In any society made up of human beings, this would have been the result. Faced with the same, North Americans too would have fought back, and with whatever limited means were at our disposal. And this will continue for generation upon generation of Palestinian children unless something is done. But the violence cannot be ended without alleviating their plight, recognising their national rights and granting them basic human dignity. I doubt Juliano would characterise the actions of his subjects as not being violence. He himself has a wife and children at home in Israel, the potential random victim of a suicide bombing. Perhaps something was lost due to the language barrier. But he does want us to understand where the violence comes from, and that there is violence on both sides. The film does not discourage us from the idea of a peace process, but as the director's mother states in the film, there will be "no peace without freedom, and no freedom without peace".

Yvette

Wed, 12 May 2004 11:50:05 -0500

ARNA's Children--- a hate fest! any one who wants a bloodthirsty go at the jews (never heard one comment about zionists or israelis-- just jews), head on over to see arna's children. the film maker had the cheek to say that his subjects did not use violence. funny about that? i would have thought shooting randomly into a civilian holiday crowd in hadera was pretty violent. geez, what do i know? congratulations new york for giving up on the peace process and supporting terror. also, congratulations for supporting the channeling of the frustration of palestinians into hatred and violence of jews. as if there was no valid reaction to the situation other than terror. amazed that people drink in this violence and hate so casually.

alizinha

Tue, 11 May 2004 11:43:06 -0500

saw 3 great films at Tribeca: 1) Tale of Two Sisters (South Korea). creepiest horror film I've ever seen. 2) Nelson Freire (Brazil, documentary). about a classical pianist from Brazil. 3) Suite Habana (Cuba). a day in the life of Havana. sad, sweet. I wonder if any will get U.S. distribution? I fear not.

Doug

Tue, 11 May 2004 09:28:24 -0500

I was also a volunteer, and several days of hauling backdrops, barricades, and booze paid off with a Friday night double-dip: the discussion with Martin Scorsese about the inspirations for musical choices in his films, followed by Carandiru, the latest from Hector Babenco (who also introduced it).

ray77

Mon, 10 May 2004 21:44:15 -0500

Agree that the will-call/get on line business was absurd. Saw America Brown and liked it very much. Heartfelt, laced with poetry, outstanding performances. Hope it finds its way.

mapboy

Mon, 10 May 2004 20:52:52 -0500

favorite was 'Crazy Legs Conti: Champion Eater' or something similar. He's a hometown guy, and the documentary was shot in a way mocking sports movies. but the irony is professional eating IS a sport and has its own sanctioned organization (ICOFE).

yojimbot

Mon, 10 May 2004 18:53:36 -0500

would have loved to see zatoichi...one day at the festival was all i could take though!

Burkhart

Mon, 10 May 2004 18:05:12 -0500

Zatoichi was best. Last Life in the Universe was interesting. The Green Hat was good till the last 2 seconds left you wondering...what the f ck happened really? Did he shoot only his hand or what? Delamu was cool, but patience was needed for the slow, donkey pace of traveling the Tea-Horse Trail. What do you think?

Nickelass

Mon, 10 May 2004 16:26:05 -0500

I'm surprised "New York Minute" didn't get more recognition. Everyone loves twins. Especially lovable ones we've all grown up with. Seriously, the showing of their movie in the TFF made me sick. Can we take the festival seriously with films like that? What interesting movies that actually benefit from festival participation were edged out by the "Full House" alumni?

joeq

Mon, 10 May 2004 14:41:15 -0500

i went 1 for 3 � america's heart and soul was GREAT, while the joe strummer "documentary" and the movie that won the best ny documentary ("kill your idols") sucked beyond words.

Filmbrain

Mon, 10 May 2004 14:20:51 -0500

Wished I had seen The Green Hat. Drats. Saw eight films at the festival -- the only great one was "Last Life in the Universe". I've started posting my reviews on my site.

Brian Van

Mon, 10 May 2004 14:02:09 -0500

I was a volunteer for most of the week during the day; I also went to many screenings and parties at night. I'm pretty hung over right now, it was a week that seemed like a month. I feel that there is definitely an opportunity for the festival to improve the organization of key events, especially screenings. It would also be nice to see the films being showcased receive better recognition and promotion so that there is some greater measure of commercial success for the films and the festival itself - all are deserving of that success. That said, it was a blast and it should be even better next year. That Kill Bill screening (Vol. 1 followed by Vol. 2 back to back in the same theater) was simply awesome. I hope it's something they try again, perhaps as a standalone event at a local movie house, because I'd definitely go see it again. Other recommended films, if they do come around to local theaters: Late Watch (comedy), One Perfect Day (music related drama/narrative), Coffee And Cigarettes, Looking for Kitty, and the NY NY Documentary award winning Kill Your Idols. Another short documentary screening at the festival was "Three Sisters Searching For A Cure", which will debut on HBO later this month. I found it to deal with the subject matter - one of three sisters is affected by ALS and they follow through with fundraising and research support - in a highly unique and uplifting manner. It should also be noted that House of D, directed by David Duchovny, was the first film to ever win a distribution deal at the Tribeca Film Festival, and it was a hot ticket at the festival. It should be coming around soon.

yojimbot

Mon, 10 May 2004 13:48:16 -0500

went to the shorts screenings on friday. they were really good although the ticket/will-call/voucher system was kafka-esque. told to wait on same line three times then told to wait on another line then finally pushed my way through ignoring everyone. almost missed the begining. the afterparty at tribeca grand was weak. it's a adolescent film festival...lots o talent, not a lot of coordination.