Short Take: "Le Havre" (***)

While walking out of my first film of the day, I caught a couple of older viewers remarking that "they don't make films like that anymore". In quite a few ways they are definitely right. Within moments of "Le Havre", you can tell there's an old-school style being brought to the table. Due merely to my own experience, my mind immediately flocks to "West Side Story". The color pallette, especially in the nighttime scenes, reminds me fondly of the old technicolor conversions of the past. The glow of evening is given this greenish blue tint, and thoughts skew immediately romantic of the old days of cinema. In spite of that, "Le Havre" bares just as many signs of today as it does of the past.

Previously pegged at Cannes as the Palme D'Or frontrunner until "The Tree of Life" proved pundits wrong, "Le Havre" focuses on an elderly shoeshiner named Marcel Marx, living in Le Havre, Normandy. His wife has been growing sicker and sicker each day, to the point where she's placed in the hospital quite gravely. Meanwhile elsewhere in the city, Inspector Monet is put onto the case of a bunch of black immigrants, one young boy of which escapes quite easily from the bumbling police. The boy seeks refuge with Marcel, who inexplicably decides to help the young boy out of the kindness of his heart. If it doesn't sound in keeping with the regular stories of today, there's a random and overstayed rock concert towards the end of the film. 

TELLURIDE BY THE SEA: My Saturday Lineup

Each year brings me a unique and exciting festival opportunity in the form of Telluride by the Sea, a weekend long recurrence of six of the films that appeared at Telluride Film Festival in Colorado earlier this month. Last year was my first time at the festival, and I saw "The King's Speech" and "Never Let Me Go" there. I wouldn't have called my critiques of the two exactly accurate. I was a bit harsh on the former, and too kind to the latter. No wonder I had such a hard time in equating my thoughts on "The King's Speech". They were ultimately dishonest.

This year I had hoped to experience the full six film experience, but that fell through the moment they announced the films appearing. I just don't have the time or interest to sustain the Sunday viewings of "The Kid with a Bike" or "In Darkness", and "Albert Nobbs" follows last year's "Tamara Drewe" in the tradition of thematically lacking openers. Saturday is going to be the beginning and the end for me this year, with three films I am eager to experience and break down. I was apprehensive to "Le Havre" at first, but it looks quite honestly agreeable, and the most interesting of the lower tier festival fare.

"A Dangerous Method" has had a wide berth of reception, from excited to unimpressed to downright hateful. I had cautious optimism from the start, and still do, but I'm not going to let my optimism dictate me astray as it did last year. Cronenberg, be prepared for a proper bashing when I'm done with you. And then the late night brings me the most exciting film of the weekend, and one I was simply ecstatic to see on the list. I still haven't finished reading the book yet, but I'll have to push forward in time for "We Need to Talk About Kevin"s appearance in Portsmouth this Saturday. Color me excited.

TELLURIDE BY THE SEA: Titles Announced!

I was worried I'd have to wait another three excruciating hours just to find out what's playing, but was happy to find out at 9 a.m. this morning. So what exactly is so exciting right now? The titles for the Portsmouth, NH mini-festival, Telluride by the Sea, have been announced and narrowed down from the list we were handed yesterday. Which title am I most disappointed about? Steve McQueen's "Shame" is not on the list to appear this year. It's such a shame, no pun intended, as it's the one I've been most eager to see from the festival. On the other hand, I'm not surprised that it isn't here. It doesn't quite fit the mold that the Portsmouth Music Hall has built over the past few years.

So what am I going to be able to see come September 23-25? For one thing "Albert Nobbs", directed by Rodrigo Garcia of last year's "Mother and Child". It's a typical choice, with period influence as well as an Oscar-bait performance from Glenn Close. Can't say I'm surprised, and can't say I'm too interested either. Last year, the weekend kicked off with "Tamara Drewe", and I steered clear of that one. Depending on how critics react to the film this weekend, I might skip out on "Albert Nobbs" as well.