'A Royal Affair' is Better Than the Marketing

Far be it from me to criticise Metrodome Distribution. After all they are to be applauded (and loudly) for bringing one of my favourite films from this year's Berlin Film Festival to the UK, in the form of Danish monarchy drama 'A Royal Affair' ('En Kongelig Affære'). Yet their handling of it troubles me, at least in terms of how it's being marketed. I reviewed that film back in February on this blog and could hardly have been more fulsome in my praise, concluding:

Everything about 'A Royal Affair' is stunning. Its ambitious scope in terms of subject matter, its intelligence, its brilliant cast of actors (I'll now happily watch anything with Alicia Vikander in it), and its lavish production values. I cried at the end, with the once vital Caroline separated from her children and living in exile, and I laughed far more and far harder than I have at the last dozen or so comedies. The story of a doctor who gives a king new confidence and inspires him to greater things, it could easily be billed as Denmark's answer to 'The King's Speech'. It's far better than that.

Yet I'm not certain the trailer (above) or theatrical poster (below) would have sold it to me. There's nothing wrong with either from an editing or design point of view, in fact both are stylish and sophisticated. But therein lies part of the problem: they aim to attract the traditional "heritage" cinema or "costume drama" audience. "Utterly seductive... an epic story of forbidden love" runs a quote from Radio Times, whilst the central image plays up the idea that this is the tale of a love triangle in fancy dress. Yes, I see the angry mob in the background, with an ominous fiery orange glow enveloping the stars, but the overwhelming impression this poster gives is that this is the tale of how two men court the same woman. Were that the case I don't think I would have been so moved by it, nor as thoroughly entertained.



What's truly great about 'A Royal Affair' - aside from the stunning performances - is that it doesn't feel at all stuffy and period bound. In fact it feels modern and dynamic. And whilst period films tend to be conservative and usually play up a romanticised view of the past, this one is all about radical political philosophy: the ideals of the enlightenment versus the grip of the ruling class in eighteenth century Europe. This is the story of how a German radical basically exploited his friendship with the insane king of Denmark in order to institute a raft of audacious reforms which quickly (and, as fate would have it, temporarily) transformed one of Europe's most politically backward countries into its most progressive. And all before the French Revolution. If you can't find a way to make that sound exciting to an audience, let alone in the fractured Europe of 2012, you have no business selling movies.

Is the titular "royal affair" important? Well, yes of course; But it isn't what the film is about. In fact even the central love story - not really a "triangle", because the king doesn't really give a damn - is mainly explored in terms of how it compromises the idealism and integrity of Johan Struensee (Mads Mikkelsen). For instance, after the affair becomes a convenient stick for the German's political opponents to beat him with using the newly free press, Struensee is driven to enact new censorship laws in an effort to safeguard his own interests. It's about how power corrupts and how absolute power corrupts absolutely. It's about the canny knack of the media and the aristocracy to mobilise the poor against their own interests - a theme that resonates very strongly today. And it's being mis-sold willfully, because the people who made the poster know and understand all of this.

'A Royal Affair' is a young film being sold as an old one for an easy buck. The market for historical costume epics is tried and trusted, whereas the appeal of eighteenth-century-radicalism-morality-fables is far less certain. I understand completely where Metrodome are coming from and I hope this release proves incredibly lucrative for them, because this film deserves to find an audience (even if it's the wrong one). I suspect many of those coming to see it on the basis that it's a scintillating love story for the ages will still enjoy the less cosy film they see before them, but the sadness is that 'A Royal Affair' could be written off by many who would find great appeal in its musing on ideology and the nature of political power.

Perhaps the image on the poster is not at fault, but rather it's the pull-quotes around it which need changing. "Utterly seductive" should be replaced by "politically incendiary" and the word "revolution" should appear somewhere. And instead of "their love would divide a nation", how about "their friendship would divide Europe"? And the word "love" (which appears twice) should not appear at all. Not because there is not a love story, but because focusing on that relationship and ignoring the ideological debate is ironically the exact same thing the yellow press does within the film. There's no doubt the marketing department played it very safe with this one and I hope it doesn't work against one of the year's best films.

'A Royal Affair' is rated '15' by the BBFC and will be released in the UK on June 15th.

62nd Berlinale Coverage

Competition:
Rebelle (War Witch) - CAN
En Kongelig Affære (A Royal Affair) - DEN/GER/CZE/SWE
Gnade (Mercy) - GER/NOR

Csak a Szél (Just the Wind) - HUN/GER/FRA

Kebun Binatang (Postcards from the Zoo) - INA/GER/HKG/CHI
Tabu - POR/GER/BRA/FRA
Was Bleibt (Home for the Weekend) - GER
L'enfant D'en Haut (Sister) - SWI/FRA
Captive - FRA/PHI/GER/UK
Jayne Mansfield's Car - USA/RUS

Metéora - GRE/GER

Barbara - GER
Dictado (Childish Games) - SPA
Cesare deve morrire (Caesar Must Die) - ITA
A Moi Seule (Coming Home) - FRA
Aujourd'Hui (Today) - FRA/SEN
Les Adieux A La Reine (Farewell My Queen) - FRA/SPA

Out of Competition:
Bel Ami - UK
The Flowers of War - CHI
Shadow Dancer - UK/IRE
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - USA

Special:
Side by Side - USA
In the Land of Blood and Honey - USA

Panorama:
Mai-Wei (My Way) - KOR
Elles - FRA/POL/GER
König des Comics (King of Comics) - GER
Marina Abramović the Artist is Present - USA
Iron Sky - FIN/NED/AUS

Forum:
Francine - USA/CAN
Toata lumea din familia noastra (Everybody in Our Family) - ROM/NED

Retrospective:
The Girl With a Hat Box/Outskirts - RUS/GER

Other coverage:
Competition/Awards Round-up

'Farewell My Queen' Berlinale (Competition) review:

Set within the walls of Versailles palace in the first days of the French Revolution, this dimly lit, distractingly handheld camera reliant period drama casts the beautiful Lea Seydoux (recently seen as a ruthless assassin in 'Mission: Impossible') as a lady in waiting whose loyalty to Queen Marie Antoinette (Diane Kruger) is unwavering and - equally - unappreciated.

From the perspective of Seydoux's Sidonie, we observe major events at a distance, often from palace windows, as King Louis XVI and his entourage consider their response to the storming of the Bastille - prancing about theatrically in the forecourt, wearing wigs and striking poses only French aristocracy could get away with. Through Sidonie we witness as hysteria grips the palace, but whilst there is much talk of nobles fleeing to the countryside in panic, there is little suggestion that any suspects they are living out the final days of an established order. As though this is the whim of a mob who will see sense.

For instance, Sidonie and her friends are still harassed to perform their most frivolous duties for indulgent masters. For her part, she's continually being pestered to deliver an embroidered pattern demanded by the queen - though her majesty has other things on her mind, having fallen deeply in love with a lady of the court who treats her with a level of disdain to which she is unaccustomed.

To see the monarch treated so casually is scandalous to Sidonie: a woman who has sacrificed not only her life but also any sense of personal identity in order to remain close to Marie Antoinette. Though whether this affection is sexual is left entirely ambiguous. What's not in doubt is that the spoiled, self-absorbed queen does not hold Sidonie in the same affection, ultimately seeing the girl as another instrument of her will.

This is a very different picture of Marie Antoinette than that we are used to seeing, with context given for why she was so despised by her people, beyond jealousy at her decadence. Here we are given insight into her political dealings as she leads a political faction within the palace who wish to crush the rebellion at the earliest stages, proposing use of a mercenary army against the people of Paris. My knowledge of French history isn't enough to say with any certainly how accurate this is, but it's certainly a more compelling portrait of this divisive figure than is provided by the oft-cited and likely apocryphal "let them eat cake!"

Director Benoit Jacquot emphasis the size of the palace through shots of Sidonie running (and frequently tripping over herself) down seemingly endless corridors. Despite living on the grounds, she is always late for work (where she acts as a reader for the Queen) - again suggesting the palace as its own vast world, detached from the reality of life in nearby Paris. It's a house of whispered rumours in which the impending terror appears closer to a scandal than an epoch-defining moment in history. That we know differently amplifies the absurdity of much of what goes on, though the film seldom plays this disconnect as satire - a contributing factor in why this sporadically interesting melodrama struggles to hold your attention and fades quickly from memory.

62nd Berlin Film Festival

I'm heading off to Berlin for this year's film festival in the early hours of tomorrow morning, where I'll be watching 20-30 films and writing pieces for the Daily Telegraph. Whilst there I'll also record a podcast or two with Jon and Craig, who are going as part of the "industry" (basically they are seeing all the films but don't have to write anything about them).

Though the festival doesn't start officially until the 9th, tomorrow night there is a preview screening of Werner Herzog's second death row documentary - entitled 'Death Row' - which I'm very much looking forward to. There's also a lot of interesting films in the competition, including 'Shadow Dancer' from James Marsh and an interesting French-Philippine drama called 'Captured', about some holiday makers who get taken hostage. I also like the sound of Billy Bob Thornton's ensemble family drama 'Jane Mansfield's Car'. There's also a European premiere for Oscar nominee 'Extreme Loud and Incredibly Close'.

But as with all festivals the best movies will probably emerge from unlikely places and be directed by people I've never heard of.

I'll do my level best to keep this blog updated whilst I'm away, though these things can be chaotic and I'll already likely have a lot of work to do. If you don't hear from me for two weeks then you can expect a huge backlog of reviews to start trickling in from when I return on the 20th.

'The Future' review:

I reviewed Miranda July's 'The Future' from Berlin earlier this year, but today sees its release in the UK. It's a real love it or hate it movie, which I suspect many will think is far too quirksome for its own good, though I really enjoyed it.

Read my review here.

'The Future' is released in UK today and rated '12A' by the BBFC.

'The Guard' review:

I reviewed Irish black comedy 'The Guard' back in February when it played in Berlin. I thought it was a highlight of that festival (one of three or four stand-out films) and it has since justly gone on to do really good business in Ireland prior to its UK-wide release yesterday.

Written and directed by John Michael McDonagh, brother of 'In Bruges' helmer Martin, 'The Guard' shares that film's irreverent sense of humour and brilliant co-star Brendan Gleeson. He's joined here by Don Cheadle who plays the American FBI agent summoned to Gleeson's rural cop beat in Ireland, where the mismatched duo attempt to solve a drug-related homicide case. It's a culture clash comedy that never pulls its punches, though nor is it ever needlessly offensive even if some might praise the script for a perceived lack of so-called "political correctness".

It perhaps lacks the heartfelt sincerity of that other film, but 'The Guard' is every bit as funny and shocking as its cinematic cousin.

Read my full review here.

'The Guard' is rated '15' by the BBFC and is out now in the UK.

'True Grit' review:

The last few years, since the Oscar-winning 'No Country for Old Men', have seen the Coen brothers rebound spectacularly from the dispiriting mediocrity of 'Intolerable Cruelty' and 'The Ladykillers'. In fact, having come out from the other side of that period of creative stagnation, they are arguably now held in higher esteem than ever before, with the duo releasing films with unprecedented regularity and virtually guaranteed a Best Picture nomination every year. Their latest is no different with 'True Grit' - an adaptation of the Charles Portis novel famously made into a 1969 film starring John Wayne - nominated in ten categories at the recent Academy Awards. Although if failed to secure a single statuette on the night, 'True Grit' is an accomplished film and by far their biggest box office success, so far earning over $200 million worldwide.

In it Jeff Bridges renews his relationship with the Coens, for whom he famously played 'The Dude' in 'The Big Lebowski', starring as alcoholic, wayward US Marshal Rooster Cogburn - the role that earned Wayne his Oscar. He is ably supported by Matt Damon and Josh Brolin as well as the impressive (Oscar nominated) newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, who plays the film's narrator Mattie Ross. Ross is a shrewd, quick-witted and idealistic fourteen year old who reacts to the murder of her father - at the hands of an outlaw named Tom Chaney (Brolin) - by enlisting the help of Cogburn after hearing that he is a ruthless man of "grit". With him she fearlessly sets off into the wilderness where they are joined in their mission by a vain and self-satisfied Texas Ranger (Damon).



The language of Portis' novel is a perfect fit for the Coens, with their fondness for colloquialisms and absurdity. For instance, the fast-talking Miss. Ross would not be out of place in many of their previous movies, especially in a scene where her persistence and intellect see her out-haggle a perplexed stable owner. It reminded me of all the other great scenes of customer-salesperson confrontation in their work - in 'Fargo', 'Raising Arizona', 'O Brother Where Art Thou' and, of course, 'No Country' - with clever word play and small-town sensibilities as ever at the forefront. And as with every feature since they penned the screenplay for Sam Raimi's 1985 effort 'Crimewave', much of the dialogue is dryly, sometimes blackly, comic.

Another early scene sees a silver-tongued lawyer interrogating Cogburn in court, with a sly command of language similar to Tony Shaloub's Freddy Riedenschneider in 'The Man Who Wasn't There' or to Clooney's character in 'Intolerable Cruelty'. Again and again as with 'No Country' - even though we are watching a faithful adaptation of a novel - familiar Coen-esque character archetypes emerge unmistakably, discovered in the source material rather than invented. Though if these are perhaps merely superficial comparisons made by a lifelong fan, more vital continuity can be found in Roger Deakins' peerless work as the film's cinematographer and Carter Burwell's restrained and effective handling of the score. "Restrained" is really the key adjective when talking about 'True Grit', which is about as straightforward a story as the Coens have told. It is economical, seemingly effortless filmmaking that verges on the poetic.



Jeff Bridges offers a less sanitised version of Cogburn than the one made famous by Wayne: his alcoholism has clearly taken its toll on his health and his speech is slurred. Though he benefits from inheriting the role in a version of the novel which is willing to explore its darker elements. The Henry Hathaway directed adaptation of '69 (which I do enjoy) retains some of the dark edge - especially in Kim Darby's performance as Ross - but this feels more by accident than design, as key plot elements and dialogue lifted from the novel tease at a moral complexity at the story's heart. The Coen's version understands its source text better and goes to those ambiguous places, though this isn't 'Kill Bill Goes West' either. The Coens haven't made a cold-blooded revenge flick, but a story about the way revenge and blood-lust deform a person's soul.

By fulfilling her desire to see Chaney dead, Ross descends into the metaphorical hell represented by a snake pit and we find, from a bitter-sweet closing monologue, that her life afterwards has come to be defined by this chapter of her life. Like the one-eyed Cogburn, she is forever physically deformed, whilst she is also a spinster. The ultimate tragedy of 'True Grit' is that it's the story of a young, bright and precocious girl damaged more by the violence she has perpetrated and witnessed in her grief than by the catalytic sinful act: death of her father. It is this aspect of the tale that the Coens hone in on, albeit subtly, which makes 'True Grit' the opposite of a John Wayne film in many ways: at its core it is a humanist, wholly non-preachy anti-death penalty film.



I've oft heard it said that the Coens are heartless storytellers: that they don't like their characters and that they are cynical about people. I don't buy into that view at all and if I did I wouldn't be a fan. The Coen brothers, for me anyway, are defined by their willingness to look at all the cruelty of the human experience through the lens of absurdity and stupidity - a bit like the satire Chris Morris or Armando Iannucci. People aren't evil or good in Coen brothers movies, they usually just don't know any better. Bad things are done by people in a state of panic (most murders in Coen brothers movies occur this way) and pre-planned acts of inhumanity always find their way back to the often hapless perpetrator (think of Macy's Jerry Lundegaard in 'Fargo'). Even if, in this case, she is a little girl avenging her father's murder - a goal many filmmakers would find unproblematic.

The Coen brother's films are not only among the best made, most sharply written of the modern age, but they are actually also among the most moral, the most honest and least blithely pessimistic films about our species. 'True Grit' is just such a film and a damn fine one. A one-eyed drunk should be able to see that.

I saw 'True Grit' open the Berlin Film Festival back in February and it has been out in the UK for several weeks since then, having been rated a '15' by the BBFC. Here is something I wrote about the press conference from Berlin.

Picturehouse Blog posts...

Apologies for the lack of updates since Berlin. I've haven't been resting on my laurels though. Here is a round-up of the non-competition films from the festival that I wrote today for the Picturehouse Blog. If you look at the entry before that one, you'll see another, even longer, round-up of the competition films.

Other than that I've had a job interview, which is potentially amazing, whilst I'm also preparing to again guest host Flick's Flicks tomorrow morning due to illness. I'm also on my usual slot on Radio Reverb tomorrow (9.15am) if anyone fancies tuning in.

I still intend to finish my review of 'True Grit', which I started writing at Berlin airport, but there haven't been enough hours in the day...

Back in Blighty. Here's the Berlin lowdown...

I'm back from the Berlin Film Festival now and glad to be able to update this blog again.

Here is most of the stuff I wrote whilst I was away, as published over on Obsessed with Film:

Winner's Report

Reviews
The Mortician - UK/USA

Taxi Driver (re-release) - USA
The Guard - IRE/UK
The Forgiveness of Blood - USA/ALB
Unknown - GER/UK/FRA
Odem (Lipstick) - ISR/UK
Wer Wenn Nicht Wir (If Not Us, Who) - GER
Saranghanda, Saranghaji Anneunda (Come Rain, Come Shine) - ROK
Un Mundo Misterioso (A Mysterious World) - ARG/GER/URU
Mein Bester Feind (My Best Enemy) - AUS/LUX
Bizim Buyuk Caresizligimiz (Our Grand Despair) - TUR/GER
Jodaeiye Nader Az Simin (Nader and Simin, A Separation) - IRN
Tambian La Iluvia (Even the Rain) - SPA/FRA/MEX
A Torinoi Lo (The Turin Horse) - HUN
The Future - USA/GER
V Subbotu (Innocent Saturday) - RUS/UKR
Les Femmes Du 6eme Etage (Service Entrance) - FRA
Coriolanus - UK
Pina - GER/FRA
Les Contes De La Nuit (Tales of the Night) - FRA
Cave of Forgotten Dreams - USA/FRA
Yelling to the Sky - USA
Almanya - Welcome to Germany - GER/TUR
Schlafrankheit (Sleeping Sickness) - GER/FRA
Silver Bullets/Art History - USA
El Premio - ARG/MEX
Margin Call - USA

I've also written a full, detailed round-up of the competition for the Picturehouse Blog.

I'll post some more in-depth reflective stuff over the week, as well as my review of 'True Grit', which opened the festival but which I didn't need to review for OWF.

61st Berlin Film Festival

This is just a post to explain the relative lack of activity on this blog over the next two weeks. Tomorrow I'm flying off to spend 12 nights in Berlin so I can take in this year's film festival. I'll be writing multiple reviews every day which you will be able to find at Obsessed With Film, which will cover (hopefully) every single "in competition" film as well as a number of high profile premières. I add "hopefully" because I have no idea right now how this festival works. In Venice you just rock up to each screening, join the queue and wait to see the movie, though I've heard that Berlin requires you to get tickets in advance, which may complicate things. I'll see what happens and try my best to review every film I can.

There may be some articles and links to my work at OWF up here over the coming days, but I can't guarantee it as I'll be writing everything on my Blackberry (as in Venice) and I'll only be able to properly edit this blog if and when I get to a computer. Regardless, there will be lots of stuff up here about my experience of the festival when I return - so do remember to check back nearer the end of this month.

Until then, auf wiedersehen.

Beames on Film is one year old!

Yesterday was the first birthday of this film blog, which I began a year and one day ago in order to have somewhere other than Facebook to shout my opinions at people over the internet. I just wanted to post a quick "thank you" to everyone who has read - or better still reads - my ramblings on cinema and hope that you stick with me over the next year, which I hope will include even more reviews and several visits to film festivals.

Here is some self-congratulatory stuff about how it's all been going.

2010 was quite eventful for me and saw me interview some big name Hollywood types (including Ricky Gervais, Darren Aronofsky and Oliver Stone) and write well over one hundred reviews, as well as lots of other stuff here and there - including one piece for the Sunday Telegraph. I have also become a regular contributor on one of the UK's best read daily film blogs Obsessed with Film and even once appeared as an "expert" on BBC Radio Sussex.

I did a lot more stuff than I ever expect to do in that first twelve months, but I can't yet rest on my laurels and I need to work to ensure that 2011 will be as big if not bigger for me (and by extension this blog). In mid-February I will be writing from the Berlin Film Festival, whilst I also hope to visit many others including a second trip to Venice later in the year (who knows, maybe even Cannes).

It's been fun, but also a lot of hard work - most of it (99.9% of it) unpaid. Thanks for supporting and encouraging me on my ramshackle journey to become a full-time film journalist. There aren't many comments left on the site, but Google Analytics ensures me you're out there. So sincerely: thank you. This coming year could prove make or break, so fingers crossed. I hope you are all still reading come January 2012!

To "sex up" this post a little with something tangentially relevant, here is my favourite scene about writing from one of my all-time favourite movies:

A good year for British film?

Jon Barrenechea, of Splendor Cinema, is back in the country now after attending the Berlin Film Festival. So expect a new edition of our podcast within the next week. We will, of course, be covering the highs and lows of Jon's time in Berlin, as well as looking at the winners and losers from the BAFTA award ceremony this weekend.

Personally, I'm hoping Armando Iannucci's sublime satirical debut feature 'In the Loop' (Iannucci and cast members pictured above) wins the award for 'Outstanding British Film', which is arguably the ceremonies most interesting category this year with the others being very similar to recent award shortlists in terms of the films nominated. With that category also featuring nominations for the low-budget Sci-fi 'Moon', Andrea Arnold's 'Fish Tank', Sam Taylor-Wood's John Lennon biopic 'Nowhere Boy' and the multi Oscar-nominated 'An Education' (which being nominated for the overall Best Film prize, must be the favourite here?) it looks like a decent year for British film, especially considering that films of the quality of 'Looking for Eric' and 'Sleep Furiously' failed to make the shortlist.

Finally, my good friend Dennis at Wrapped in Brown Paper has written a cracking review of a recent British crime film I have never heard of called 'Tony'. He highly recommends it and it's worth checking out his review if you are interested in British independent cinema or the crime genre in general. Apparently it's available on DVD and on the strength of Dennis's review it maybe one to check out soon.

Watch this space for the next Splendor Cinema/Duke of York's podcast!

Support Armando and co by watching the BAFTAs award ceremony in full on BBC1, Sunday the 21st February at 21.00.

It's alive! The most splendid Splendor podcast yet is here!

It’s finally here! After a technical hitch that involved the host thinking he’d accidentally deleted the entire recording, the latest Splendor Cinema/Duke of York’s podcast is up. Of course you already know that if you subscribed to it on iTunes. For everyone else, what’s keeping you?

This time around Jon and I talk about the Oscar nominations and discuss who should win and who will win the coveted awards in March. It’s pod gold. Sadly, it may also be the last podcast for a few weeks as Jon is off to Berlin to catch the festival, the lucky devil. On the bright side he will be back with news of the latest films from Scorsese and Polanski, as well as insights on a whole host of other interesting movies and events. So watch this space for that report.