Sunday, March 21, 2010

Why the FICG Rocked My World.

So yes, I'm finally back and blogging after ten days of pure movie bliss. I had no idea film festivals could be so exhausting and between the screenings, drink-until-early-hours-of-the-morn' parties, conferences and sight seeing I honestly had no chance to write a single word about any of the films I saw.
I did see wonderful things which you will learn all about in the upcoming days (I have a theory about an alternate Oscar win now) and I gained new faith in the art of the short film (why oh why don't we get more of them?).
The overall experience was fantastic and I really urge everyone out there to make sure they visit Guadalajara at least once; it's such a wonderful city!
Not only is it breathtakingly beautiful but it is also one of the most cultural places I've ever been to. Few things have given me as much pleasure as watching a bunch of 14 year olds walk into the screening of an Israeli film and actually stop texting while the movie played.
But that wasn't the only great thing about Guadalajara;
  • It was fascinating to learn about the different takes on film criticism between Europeans and Americans.
    While screenwriter Michael Tolkin all but declared that criticism was irrelevant in the face of Twitter and blogs, European festival organizers saw this as an opportunity to reaffirm the need of leading voices in film criticism that actually contribute to the overall experience of watching a film.
    There was a debate between important Latin American film critics that stimulated me intellectually in shamelessly pleasurable ways.
  • I had no idea how old Matt Dillon actually was. He sure looks good though.
  • I attended the world premiere of a movie which didn't even have an IMDB page yet! More about that soon...
  • Ugh it's so ridiculous to think of the amount of movies that never get distribution in most countries. Out of the dozen or so films I saw there are some that have only premiered in festivals and Norway!
  • The screenwriter of Goodbye, Lenin! bought me a beer!
  • A Prophet is nothing short of majestic on a giant movie screen.
  • Diego Luna has got to be one of the nicest movie people out there, I wasn't even starstruck when I was in the same room with him!
  • Kinatay was a letdown in terms of shock...am I becoming too difficult to surprise?
  • Nothing like Europop to uplift a so-so movie and make it more entertaining than it has any right to be.
More to come about the fabulous festival movies after I get a much needed rest...
How have all of you been?

8 comments:

Calum Reed said...

Sorry to hear about Kinatay! I was expecting fire and brimstone on the shock-factor front.

Guadalajara looks dreamy. Write reviews!

Courtney Small said...

Look forward to reading you reviews of the films you saw, and heaing more about the criticism debate. Sounds like a really good festival.

Courtney Small said...

that should be "hearing more about..."

Unknown said...

You forgot to mention the hot men in bicycles!

Castor said...

Oh very happy to hear that you had a great time. Next time, you should take a digital camera so we can enjoy it too! Glad to have you back!

Andrew K. said...

Glad you enjoyed it, but I'm glad it's done so that you're back here. :)

Luke said...

Welcome back! In one of your write-ups, you should explain how one becomes amazing enough to be blessed to go to one of these super-cool festivals!

Notas Sobre Creación Cultural e Imaginarios Sociales said...

I will Cal!

CS: it was very interesting, I think it was the most fascinating thing at the center of my festival experience. I'll try to make a concise essay about it soon! If not we should always have a chat about it!

Yo no los vi Anna...lol so I can't mention them.

Castor: I'm the worst traveler of all time and never take cameras with me, luckily a friend took lotsa pictures, I'll make sure I can get some from her.

You're gonna make me blush Andrew...

Luke: thanks! Haha I'm not sure I'm amazing, on any level, but I'll try my best to do what you ask for.

Also thanks for the warm welcome guys! Can't wait to talk with all of you about the films I saw.