30th Leeds International Film Festival, 3rd-17th November 2016

When it comes to planning and prioritising titles at film festivals I seem to be getting better every year. It's hard to comment on the overall quality of the festival when I've seen such a small fraction of what was on offer and only 3 of the 20 audience favourites. However I have fewer regrets than usual about what I missed and didn't have the same level of fatigue by the end of the festival that I had in previous years. At the start of the second week I was fighting off a cough and bad cold which meant I had to drop films such as Jim Jarmusch's documentary on The Stooges( Gimme Danger), controversial French cannibal pic Raw and The Noonday Witch from my schedule.

As it's November I'm determined to focus on newer titles. As the year draws to a close it's a perfect opportunity to find potential highlights of 2016. Sadly this means skipping an exciting opportunity to see classic titles such as Heat, The Matrix, Blue Velvet, Woman in the Dunes and Cleo from 5 to 7 on the big screen. For the first time in years I missed the silent film screening with the live organ accompaniment (Pal Fejos's 1928 feature Lonesome). Most regrettable was not seeing the screening of Abel Gance's legendary Napoleon at the Town Hall. Under any other circumstances this would be a must-see event but in the middle of a punishing festival schedule the prospect of a 5 and a half hour silent epic is just too daunting. Fortunately a simultaneous DVD/Blu-Ray release from the BFI eases my disappointment but I can't help feeling like I passed up the chance of a lifetime to see this monumental film in its ideal environment.

I did make a concession for a 30th anniversary screening of Aliens as it took place on one of the quieter days and the introduction talk about the pulse rifle by the Royal Armouries added a layer of interest.

I wonder if some titles in the classics/retrospectives selection may fare better outside of a festival climate. There are occasional cinephile events throughout the year in Leeds but the determination to cram the festival programme with a year's worth of treasures could be self defeating. Having such an emphasis on a 2 week feast of films in November feels a bit restrictive. The desire to please everyone seems to be working however as the organisers proudly announced that this is now the UK's second biggest film festival outside of (surprise, surprise) London. Alas there as no sign of my most eagerly anticipated film of 2016 - Paul Verhoeven's Elle, which found its way on the London film festival programme in October.

Another gripe was that I wasn't able to work the late additions to the programme - Moonlight, My Life as a Courgette and audience favourite Mindhorn - in to my timetable as they clashed with titles I already had my mind set on and they didn't get repeat showings. For similar reasons I sadly missed out on intriguing sounding documentaries such as S1 and Homo Sapiens.

The opening and closing titles were both smart choices. Jim Jarmusch's likable Paterson got things off to a flying start and critics favourite Toni Erdmann (which went down a storm at Cannes this year) was a highly anticipated finale to the festival. On the auteur front there were new offerings from Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Creepy), Park Chan-wook (The Handmaiden), Kelly Reichardt (Certain Women), Cristi Puiu (Sieranevada), Cristian Mungiu (Graduation), Spike Lee (Chi-Raq), Bertrand Tavernier (A Journey Through French Cinema) and Xavier Dolan (It's Only the End of the World). Titles such as Train to Busan and Under the Shadow reaffirmed my complete lack of interest in modern Horror films. I passed on the chance to see Nate Parker's much debated The Birth of a Nation and Mel Gibson's Hacksaw Ridge as both should be on general release fairly soon. The most enjoyable day for me came early on with the Animation Day at the Town Hall. Last year I unwisely watched all of the day's films whereas this year I managed 3 (Kizumonogatari, The Red Turtle & A Silent Voice) out of 5.

I stuck mainly to official selection titles but there were curious assemblies of films under several banners including New Wave Women, Iconic Soundtracks, Norwegian Comedies, Music on Film and Underground Voices. Here's a link to a list of the films I watched at the festival over the past two weeks.

John Carpenter - 'Release the Bats Tour' live show in Manchester

Manchester Victoria Warehouse - Saturday October 29th, 2016

Probably my most eagerly anticipated event of the year - a live concert by one of my favourite filmmakers and musicians. John Carpenter made several of the films that made me a film fanatic in my childhood and early teens but what is extraordinary is how so much of his work gets even better on repeated viewings. Few filmographies have given me more pleasure as a viewer or produced more personal favourites than Carpenter's work. They are films that work as great entertainment but also reveal surprising depths, ideas, themes and subtleties on further inspection. As a composer, Carpenter's now iconic film scores led to a love of electronic and minimalist music that endures to this day and inspired me to attempt my own keyboard and synth led compositions.

In some ways the 21st century hasn't been an ideal time to be a Carpenter fan. Following the hostile reception and poor box office performance of Ghosts of Mars in 2001 Carpenter went on indefinite hiatus. He's been fairly open about his reluctance to return to filmmaking sighting among other things health reasons and the general cynical atmosphere of working in the film industry. In the years since there have been two 60 minute TV movies done for the 'Masters of Horror' series - Cigarette Burns (2005) and Pro-Life (2006) - and one low budget feature The Ward (2010). Despite working within the Horror genre with which he is now synonymous they all generally lacked Carpenter's signature style and, perhaps significantly, none of these were scored by Carpenter. In an early 1990s interview he remarked that if he stopped making films he'd probably "sit around and talk about the old days" which it turns out was a fairly accurate prediction. As of late he's been a prominent figure at retrospectives, festivals, conventions and signings which seem to imply he's happy to reflect on his work rather than launch new projects. Despite his awareness and pride in his own considerable legacy it's a shame that there has been relatively little effort to reassess his less heralded works from the 1990s, although hopefully they too in time will grow in stature the way his 1980s work did.

There have however been some consolations for devoted Carpenter followers of recent times with plenty of gems to mine from his prior work. The DVD/Blu-Ray age has ushered in terrific special editions of several Carpenter films, with commentary tracks, interviews, documentaries and deleted scenes that have helped shed more light on his output. Rare TV movies Someone's Watching Me! (1978) and Elvis (1979) have both been given welcome DVD releases allowing completists to see these relatively obscure titles in a quality format. Even Carpenter related works like Halloween II and Halloween III: Season of the Witch (both of which were produced, co-written and scored by Carpenter) have got the deluxe treatment courtesy of Shout! Factory.

Expanded releases of his soundtrack work has put previous releases to shame. Former collaborator Alan Howarth has issued limited edition CDs of the full scores for Prince of Darkness, They Live and Halloween II & III as well as re-recordings of the scores to Dark Star, Assault on Precinct 13 and The Thing (which includes the short Carpenter synth cues in addition to Ennio Morricone's score). Meanwhile La La Land records have released the complete scores to Big Trouble in Little China and Escape from L.A. as opposed to the abbreviated tracks and highlight selections of prior editions.

In 2015 Carpenter somewhat unexpectedly released his first ever non-soundtrack LP titled Lost Themes, a series of instrumental pieces that he co-wrote and performed with his son Cody Carpenter and his godson Daniel Davies.

Carpenter's own role is probably somewhat overstated in the billing and marketing of these records. The prog-rock style and abrupt tempo changes on several tracks seem more like the work of Cody - who scored his father's two 'Masters of Horror' episodes and has put several of his own recordings online. At times the album takes on the feel of an extended jam session with a bunch of riffs and motifs cobbled together somewhat awkwardly. There's a chaotic randomness in places that makes it hard to know where some tracks start and others begin. The influence of 1970s recordings by Tangerine Dream, Goblin and in particular Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells seem rather too obvious in places. However there's enough of Carpenter's slow build and moody vibe on tracks like 'Vortex' and 'Night' to keep fans happy.

Lost Themes II (a more guitar driven followup) was released in 2016.

Standout tracks including 'Distant Dream', 'Hofner Dawn', 'Dark Blues' and 'Real Xeno' (a CD only bonus track for some reason). Adding to the excitement of this release was the news that for the first time in his career Carpenter would be going on tour to perform album tracks and classic themes at live shows.

It seems increasingly unlikely that Carpenter will direct another feature and with his enthusiasm for filmmaking having clearly diminished this new chapter in his career has been a welcome development.

The live shows were announced in late 2015 so I've had a near twelve month buildup to the show and seeing the director of the 1978 classic Halloween perform in late October seemed like perfect timing. Sadly the major story of the night for me and many others was the venue itself. The Victoria Warehouse was a horrendous choice of setting for the show: overcrowded, terrible sound quality and there was only a very limited view of the band on stage and the projected film footage unless you were close to the front. Seeing Carpenter perform live seemed like a dream come true but the show itself was something of a nightmare.

When I booked the tickets in late 2015 the show was originally scheduled for two nights at the Albert Hall in central Manchester. Due to a change of promoters and popular demand the Friday show was cancelled and the show was relocated to the Victoria Warehouse near to Old Trafford on the Saturday evening. The Albert Hall was clearly a far more appropriate setting and the decision by the organisers to change it was regrettable to say the least.

The Manchester Evening News covered this infuriating aspect of the show in its review and website coverage.

I can only hope that Carpenter and his touring band do some additional UK live shows in the not too distant future and I get a chance to see them at a more appropriate location. At brief moments I was able to enjoy the show and get a glimpse of how it was supposed to be before my view once again got blocked and the sound became more distorted. Too bad I didn't go to the show in Liverpool instead.

I'd like to end this on a positive note so I will say it was delightful to see a huge turnout for John Carpenter performing selections from his two recent LPs as well as his iconic film scores from the 1970s and 1980s. I'd imagined it would be more of a niche offering but the huge audience in attendance proved otherwise. As someone who has idolised Carpenter for many years hearing the crowd's hugely appreciative response to the man, his films and his music was genuinely heartwarming.

Happy Halloween!

29th Leeds International Film Festival (5-19 November 2015)

Leeds Film Festival 2015

The 29^th Leeds International Film Festival (5-19 November 2015) ended last week and although draining at times there was much to be thankful for. I’ll talk about individual titles in more detail in my yearly roundup but there was certainly no shortage of highlights. In terms of variety it caters very well to cinephiles and more casual filmgoers. It’s hard to do justice to the programme of films on offer without going in to great detail but I’ll try to give a summary of what intrigued me.
 

The official selection included new works from filmmakers such as Hou Hsiao-hsien (The Assassin), Todd Haynes (Carol), Peter Greenaway (Eisenstein in Guanajuato), Hirokazu Koreeda (Our Little Sister), Paolo Sorrentino (Youth), Terence Davies (Sunset Song) and Jafar Panahi (Taxi Tehran). There were early UK Screenings of much hyped new titles like festival opener Brooklyn, Tangerine, Grandma, Son of Saul, Black Mass, Victoria, Room and The Club. As usual, Anime Sunday provided a showcase for contemporary Japanese animated fare, including the new Ghost in the Shell movie. Particularly impressive was the showings of such “lost” classics as Mikhail Kalatozov’s 1960 Siberian adventure film Letter Never Sent and 1919’s Nerves, considered by some to be the first German expressionist film, a restored version of Philip Ridley’s extraordinary 1990 oddity The Reflecting Skin and the 1981 Hungarian animated feature Feherlofia (aka Son of the White Mare).

Carrying on the tradition of screening silent films, both The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Nanook of the North were shown to glorious effect in the town hall with a live organ accompaniment. The retrospective screenings also included a chance to see The Iron Giant, Blade Runner: The Final Cut, Rosemary’s Baby, La Silence de la Mer, The Big Blue and Leon on the big screen. To the programmer’s credit Apocalypse Now was shown twice and I was pleased to discover that on both occasions it was the original cut and not the cynical and redundant 2001 redux version, which barely warrants a footnote to Coppola’s original film. On the documentary front there were two very worthwhile pieces of film history in the form of Kent Jones’s Hitchcock/Truffaut and From Caligari to Hitler: German Cinema in the Age of the Masses. Directors in attendance included Pupi Avati (doing a Q & A to accompany The House with the Laughing Windows, which showed alongside his zombie flick Zeder) and Jerome Bonnell (All About Them).

It all sounds too good to be true and needless to say I couldn’t schedule in all these films over the two weeks of the festival as there were many clashes on the programme. I wish I could have got to the Brief Encounter event and regret missing such titles as The Measure of a Man (a showcase for the great French actor Vincent Lindon), Andrei Konchalovsky’s The Postman’s White Nights, Laurie Anderson’s Heart of a Dog and Bone Tomahawk (a Kurt Russell Western that sounds much more intriguing than Tarantino’s forthcoming Hateful Eight). As I was back at work in the second week most of my screenings were crammed in to the first week. Enthusiasm can only go so far and there were a couple of times where I was watching my fourth film of the day at 10.30pm and fatigue took over. The Piotr Szulkin double bill of obscure, hard hitting science fiction (Golem and The War of the Worlds: Next Century) was an extremely challenging afternoon at a point when I probably needed a bit of escapism. 

Having purchased a festival pass I had almost unlimited access to the films on offer. I could have been more adventurous with my choices but with over 300 screenings across 15 days you have to be selective and prioritise to some degree. With the documentaries I played it fairly safe by sticking to subjects I’m well versed in (Hitchcock and Weimar cinema) as opposed to something outside my comfort zone. As usual I’ve ignored Horror titles completely, as the genre holds little appeal or interest for me these days. Much of what was showing looked to be dull, derivative and uninspired and I wasn’t willing to seek out obscure gems when time was so limited.

Sadly the damp squib of the festival was the filmed John  Carpenter Q & A that preceded the showing of The Thing. It was a pre-recorded rather than live interview which was hit by technical difficulties, while Carpenter himself seemed to have a notable lack of enthusiasm about the whole thing. His sardonic, don’t-give-a-sh*t attitude got a bit wearying at times but it was nice to hear him reminisce about the late, great Roddy Piper and I was thrilled to hear he will have another album out (plus live shows!) next year. While I hold out little hope for a new film, his recent music ventures have certainly been a cause for excitement. I also enjoyed the Carpenter poster exhibition at the North Bar, which was well worth seeing. The selection of Carpenter titles showing (The Fog, Escape from New York, The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China and They Live) was hard to argue with and if anyone needed to be reminded of Carpenter’s well earned legendary status there were 5 titles that fit the bill perfectly.

In all the years that I’ve been going to the festival I thought that this was the best lineup yet. Even though I’d done my research there were a few misjudgements and grievous errors in my choices, but that’s all part of the fun I suppose. There’s always an element of guesswork involved with these things but it was well worth the effort and I certainly found a lot of use for the festival pass that I bought. I'm already looking forward to next year's festival.