At the Columbia Club a woman in the audience asked [...]

Not so long ago Woody Allen played Alvy Singer in [...]

Babel (Inarritu; 2006) raises an interesting question about the relationship between a film and a filmmaker. Is it entirely a symbiotic one? How much Inarritu is in Babel, and vice-versa? Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu seems very much present in Babel's stories, taking a prominent position among the individuals who form this wide net of a cast. He lifts the veil draped over human suffering and lead us toward our redemption.

The first thirty minutes of Gaspar Noé's "Irreversible" had a background noise added which hovers around the 28 hz frequency. This type of frequency causes nausea, sickness and vertigo in humans; this might help explain the numerous walkouts on the festival circuit the year the film came out (2002; San Sebastian, Cannes)--though there were other reasons (fire extinguisher, anyone?). "Irreversible," which stars Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci caused debate, disagreements and managed at the same time to bring us deep into the moist recesses of France's libidinous culture (swapping and the like).

In 2006 while at the Cannes Film Festival I attended [...]

Hal Hartley could be described as several things at once: [...]

At the 59th Cannes Film Festival I stood outside the press conference for Shortbus, by John Cameron Mitchell. Two large plasmas hung on each side of the foyer area leading to the conference room and journalists started huddling around the screens to watch the proceedings. Inside, Mitchell, who was flanked by his producer and the cast patiently fielded questions from the press, his usual good-humored snarl displayed prominently.