Danish sales outfit Dr Sales, attached to the Sundance Grand Jury Prize winning doc “A New Kind of Wilderness,” has boarded another high-quality Norwegian documentary – “Phantoms of the Sierra Madre” by the multi-awarded Håvard Bustnes.
The epic and self-reflective film, made in partnership with the Mescalero Apache Tribe, is due to world premiere in the main Dox:Award competition of Copenhagen’s Cph:dox festival, running March 13-24.
Bustnes, Christian Aune Falch and Torstein Parelius are producing for Norway’s Upnorth Film, in co-production with Finland’s Napa Films. Executive producers are Bird Runningwater, a high-profile figure from the Cheyenne and Mescalero Apache tribes and former Sundance programmer, key film collaborator Pius Garcia, great-grandson of legendary Apache warrior Geronimo, as well as Upnorth’s Ingrid Galadriel Aune Falch.
In the film, established Danish screenwriter Lars K. Andersen embarks on a quest to locate a disappeared Apache tribe in Mexico. His odyssey filmed...
The epic and self-reflective film, made in partnership with the Mescalero Apache Tribe, is due to world premiere in the main Dox:Award competition of Copenhagen’s Cph:dox festival, running March 13-24.
Bustnes, Christian Aune Falch and Torstein Parelius are producing for Norway’s Upnorth Film, in co-production with Finland’s Napa Films. Executive producers are Bird Runningwater, a high-profile figure from the Cheyenne and Mescalero Apache tribes and former Sundance programmer, key film collaborator Pius Garcia, great-grandson of legendary Apache warrior Geronimo, as well as Upnorth’s Ingrid Galadriel Aune Falch.
In the film, established Danish screenwriter Lars K. Andersen embarks on a quest to locate a disappeared Apache tribe in Mexico. His odyssey filmed...
- 3/1/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
The title “Simple as Water,” a five-part Syrian refugee documentary structured like an omnibus film, could just as well apply to filmmaker Megan Mylan’s spare and unassuming directing style. You can hardly see the scaffold of a documentary film at all. In fact, “Simple” unfolds more like a riveting neorealist drama, with no trace of the woman and her crew behind the camera, no talking heads, no filmmakerly intervention of any kind. Instead, five stories of refugees from Syria and of the people still living in its war-rattled grasp unspool with an unadorned melancholy, giving way to .
Academy Award–winning director Megan Mylan has spanned the globe before in search of a compelling story, whether to unsung corners of India (“Smile Pinki”) or Africa (“Lost Boys of the Sudan”). “Simple as Water” takes Mylan and her team to five countries: Turkey, Greece, Germany, Syria, and eventually the United States.
Academy Award–winning director Megan Mylan has spanned the globe before in search of a compelling story, whether to unsung corners of India (“Smile Pinki”) or Africa (“Lost Boys of the Sudan”). “Simple as Water” takes Mylan and her team to five countries: Turkey, Greece, Germany, Syria, and eventually the United States.
- 11/4/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Exclusive: HBO Documentary Films has acquired worldwide and streaming rights to Simple as Water, a new documentary from Oscar winner Megan Mylan, which will hit theaters in limited release later this year before debuting on HBO, subsequently becoming available for streaming on HBO Max.
Mylan’s film is a meditation on the elemental bonds between parent and child. It takes audiences into Syrian families’ quests for normalcy and through a whirlwind of obstacles—to building life anew—examining the impact of war, separation and displacement.
The project was filmed in Turkey, Greece, Germany, Syria and the U.S. over the course of five years. It came to fruition through the joint efforts of small crews scattered across the world; many of those involved behind the scenes are Syrian refugees, themselves.
“I think of Simple As Water as a family love story celebrating the elemental bonds between parent and child,...
Mylan’s film is a meditation on the elemental bonds between parent and child. It takes audiences into Syrian families’ quests for normalcy and through a whirlwind of obstacles—to building life anew—examining the impact of war, separation and displacement.
The project was filmed in Turkey, Greece, Germany, Syria and the U.S. over the course of five years. It came to fruition through the joint efforts of small crews scattered across the world; many of those involved behind the scenes are Syrian refugees, themselves.
“I think of Simple As Water as a family love story celebrating the elemental bonds between parent and child,...
- 10/7/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Film captures lives of young Palestinians living in Tel Aviv.
Paris-based Alma Cinema has picked up sales on Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud’s debut feature In Between (Bar Bahar) ahead of its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 8-18) on Sept 11.
The film follows a group of young Palestinians, hailing from Arab towns and villages lying within Israeli borders, living in Tel Aviv.
At the heart of the story are party animals Leila and Salma whose hedonistic lifestyles are disrupted by the arrival of family friend Noor, a devout Muslim girl from the Arab town of Umm al-Fahm.
Alma head of sales and acquisitions Sara May described the work as an unprecedented portrait of the challenges and contradictions facing young Palestinian women born and living in Israel.
“Maysaloun deals with the subject in a very subtle, entertaining way. It’s fun. I think it could be a real crowd-pleaser,” said May.[p...
Paris-based Alma Cinema has picked up sales on Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud’s debut feature In Between (Bar Bahar) ahead of its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 8-18) on Sept 11.
The film follows a group of young Palestinians, hailing from Arab towns and villages lying within Israeli borders, living in Tel Aviv.
At the heart of the story are party animals Leila and Salma whose hedonistic lifestyles are disrupted by the arrival of family friend Noor, a devout Muslim girl from the Arab town of Umm al-Fahm.
Alma head of sales and acquisitions Sara May described the work as an unprecedented portrait of the challenges and contradictions facing young Palestinian women born and living in Israel.
“Maysaloun deals with the subject in a very subtle, entertaining way. It’s fun. I think it could be a real crowd-pleaser,” said May.[p...
- 9/6/2016
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Film captures lives of young Palestinians living in Tel Aviv.
Paris-based Alma Cinema has picked up sales on Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud’s debut feature Bar Bahar (In Between) ahead of its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 8-18) on Sept 11.
The film follows a group of young Palestinians, hailing from Arab towns and villages lying within Israeli borders, living in Tel Aviv.
At the heart of the story are party animals Leila and Salma whose hedonistic lifestyles are disrupted by the arrival of family friend Noor, a devout Muslim girl from the Arab town of Umm al-Fahm.
Alma head of sales and acquisitions Sara May described the work as an unprecedented portrait of the challenges and contradictions facing young Palestinian women born and living in Israel.
“Maysaloun deals with the subject in a very subtle, entertaining way. It’s fun. I think it could be a real crowd-pleaser,” said May.[p...
Paris-based Alma Cinema has picked up sales on Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud’s debut feature Bar Bahar (In Between) ahead of its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 8-18) on Sept 11.
The film follows a group of young Palestinians, hailing from Arab towns and villages lying within Israeli borders, living in Tel Aviv.
At the heart of the story are party animals Leila and Salma whose hedonistic lifestyles are disrupted by the arrival of family friend Noor, a devout Muslim girl from the Arab town of Umm al-Fahm.
Alma head of sales and acquisitions Sara May described the work as an unprecedented portrait of the challenges and contradictions facing young Palestinian women born and living in Israel.
“Maysaloun deals with the subject in a very subtle, entertaining way. It’s fun. I think it could be a real crowd-pleaser,” said May.[p...
- 9/6/2016
- ScreenDaily
Joshua Oppenheimer's documentary feature takes his earlier The Act of Killing one step further. An Indonesian optometrist dares to interview death squad leaders that half a century before murdered a million people as part of an anti-communist genocide. The eye doctor's own brother was one of the victims. What we see sheds light on a long-suppressed outrage, smothered by a reign of terror and international indifference. The Look of Silence Blu-ray + Digital HD Drafthouse / Cinedigm Films 2014 / Color / 1:78 widescreen / 103 min. / Street Date January 12, 2016 / 29.93 Starring Adi Rukun Cinematography Lars Skree Film Editor Nils Pagh Andersen Original Music Seri Banang, Mana Tahan Produced by Sygne Byrge Sorensen Directed by Joshua Oppenheimer
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
We in America truly live a sheltered First-World life, where a level of basic security is still considered the norm. But terrible events that occur beyond the reach of the news media, or that are simply inconvenient,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
We in America truly live a sheltered First-World life, where a level of basic security is still considered the norm. But terrible events that occur beyond the reach of the news media, or that are simply inconvenient,...
- 1/9/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Other winners include Rams, Son of Saul, The Look of Silence and Gaspar Noé’s Love.Scroll down for full list of winners
Cinematographer Ed Lachman has won the prestigious Golden Frog at the 23rd Camerimage (Nov 14-21) for his work on Todd Haynes’ period drama Carol.
A total of 15 films were in the running for the prize, awarded to titles representing the greatest achievements in cinematography at the festival, held in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz.
The Silver Frog went to Sturla Brandt Grøvlen for his cinematography on Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams.
The Bronze Frog was won by Mátyás Erdély for his cinematography on László Nemes’ Holocaust drama, Son Of Saul.
Other prizes saw The Look Of Silence cinematographer Lars Skree pick up the Golden Frog in the feature-length documentary films competition.
Gaspar Noé’s hardcore sex drama Love won Best 3D Film for cinematographer Benoît Debie.
Camerimage 2015Main Competition
Golden Frog: Carol
cin. Ed Lachman
dir. Todd Haynes...
Cinematographer Ed Lachman has won the prestigious Golden Frog at the 23rd Camerimage (Nov 14-21) for his work on Todd Haynes’ period drama Carol.
A total of 15 films were in the running for the prize, awarded to titles representing the greatest achievements in cinematography at the festival, held in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz.
The Silver Frog went to Sturla Brandt Grøvlen for his cinematography on Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams.
The Bronze Frog was won by Mátyás Erdély for his cinematography on László Nemes’ Holocaust drama, Son Of Saul.
Other prizes saw The Look Of Silence cinematographer Lars Skree pick up the Golden Frog in the feature-length documentary films competition.
Gaspar Noé’s hardcore sex drama Love won Best 3D Film for cinematographer Benoît Debie.
Camerimage 2015Main Competition
Golden Frog: Carol
cin. Ed Lachman
dir. Todd Haynes...
- 11/23/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
As part of our How I Shot That series, Indiewire asked cinematographers with films at this year's Sundance to name their favorite directors of photography (no surprise that Roger Deakins, Harris Savides and Gordon Willis are mentioned quite a bit). Here they list some of their favorite cinematographers (and explain why): "I really enjoyed the film 'Armadillo' in part due to the cinematic moments Lars Skree captured away from the frontline. I was incredibly intimidated and excited when I had the opportunity to assist him a few years later on an Afghanistan shoot. He quickly put me at ease and was constantly offering to teach as we worked, which is very rare during a shoot. I hope I'll get to work with him again!" -- Cinematographer Rachel Beth Anderson ("E-Team") "Can I just give you a small list? Conrad Hall, Gordon Willis, and Harris Savides will live...
- 1/24/2014
- by Max O'Connell
- Indiewire
Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Surrogate and The House I Live In among challenging award-winners at 2012 festival
A Louisiana-set drama about a father and his daughter threatened by the impact of global warming, the autobiographical tale of a man's quest to lose his virginity despite living out much of his life in an iron lung and a polemical documentary targeting America's war on drugs were among the top prize-winners as the Sundance film festival reached its denouement at the weekend.
Beasts of the Southern Wild, the story of a six-year-old girl living with her dad in the flood-threatened basins near the Mississippi delta, won both the jury prize for best Us drama and a cinematography prize. Benh Zeitlin's film features a cast of non-actors and has been praised by the Guardian's Damon Wise as "the first significant eco-threat movie to be seen through the eyes of the generation...
A Louisiana-set drama about a father and his daughter threatened by the impact of global warming, the autobiographical tale of a man's quest to lose his virginity despite living out much of his life in an iron lung and a polemical documentary targeting America's war on drugs were among the top prize-winners as the Sundance film festival reached its denouement at the weekend.
Beasts of the Southern Wild, the story of a six-year-old girl living with her dad in the flood-threatened basins near the Mississippi delta, won both the jury prize for best Us drama and a cinematography prize. Benh Zeitlin's film features a cast of non-actors and has been praised by the Guardian's Damon Wise as "the first significant eco-threat movie to be seen through the eyes of the generation...
- 1/30/2012
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
Parker Posey was all set to host last night's awards ceremony, but fell ill — and so, as live-bloggers Eric Hynes and Claiborne Smith report, Sundance festival director John Cooper reluctantly took the helm, choking up a bit right at the top as he drove himself through a remembrance of Bingham Ray. Rebounding, he brought on director and actress Katie Aselton as co-host and it was on to the awards. You can actually watch all this here (select "2012 Sundance Film Festival"). An overview of what the critics are saying about the winners:
Grand Jury Prize: Documentary. The House I Live In, "a lucid, long-view unpacking of the War on Drugs from Eugene Jarecki, who ably dissected the lead-up to the Iraq War in Why We Fight." The Boston Globe's Ty Burr: "The movie marshals a wide selection of talking heads, from Oklahoma prison guards and Reagan-era appointees to street dealers and Jarecki's own nanny,...
Grand Jury Prize: Documentary. The House I Live In, "a lucid, long-view unpacking of the War on Drugs from Eugene Jarecki, who ably dissected the lead-up to the Iraq War in Why We Fight." The Boston Globe's Ty Burr: "The movie marshals a wide selection of talking heads, from Oklahoma prison guards and Reagan-era appointees to street dealers and Jarecki's own nanny,...
- 1/30/2012
- MUBI
Chicago – “Art is not a competition. But if it were, these would be the winners,” quipped filmmaker Mike Birbiglia at the Jan. 28 awards presentation for the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Birbiglia’s deadpan humor would’ve made him an ideal host for the event, and his appearance was one of the few bright spots in a rather disappointing ceremony.
John Cooper, Director of the Sundance Film Festival, stepped in to replace Indie Queen Parker Posey, whose inspired comic turn in Michael Walker’s “Price Check” garnered positive buzz among festivalgoers. The show opened in tears and solemnity as Cooper paid heartfelt tribute to the late film executive Bingham Ray, who suffered a fatal stroke during the festival.
One of the evening’s big winners was Benh Zeitlin’s visually arresting drama “Beasts of the Southern Wild” about a six-year-old girl (Quvenzhané Wallis) who embarks on a search...
John Cooper, Director of the Sundance Film Festival, stepped in to replace Indie Queen Parker Posey, whose inspired comic turn in Michael Walker’s “Price Check” garnered positive buzz among festivalgoers. The show opened in tears and solemnity as Cooper paid heartfelt tribute to the late film executive Bingham Ray, who suffered a fatal stroke during the festival.
One of the evening’s big winners was Benh Zeitlin’s visually arresting drama “Beasts of the Southern Wild” about a six-year-old girl (Quvenzhané Wallis) who embarks on a search...
- 1/29/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Park City, Utah -- A mythical film starring an 8-year-old girl and a documentary about the war on drugs took top honors at the Sundance Film Festival.
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" won the grand jury prize in the U.S. dramatic competition, and "The House I Live In" won the same honor in the U.S. documentary category Saturday at the independent film festival's awards ceremony.
Directed and co-written by 29-year-old first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin, "Beasts of the Southern Wild" follows a girl named Hushpuppy who lives with her father in the southern Delta. The film also won the cinematography prize.
Zeitlin said he was grateful to the Sundance Institute and labs, where he worked on the film for more than three years.
"This project was such a runt, this sort of messy-hair, dirty, wild child, and we just have been taken care of and just eased along until...
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" won the grand jury prize in the U.S. dramatic competition, and "The House I Live In" won the same honor in the U.S. documentary category Saturday at the independent film festival's awards ceremony.
Directed and co-written by 29-year-old first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin, "Beasts of the Southern Wild" follows a girl named Hushpuppy who lives with her father in the southern Delta. The film also won the cinematography prize.
Zeitlin said he was grateful to the Sundance Institute and labs, where he worked on the film for more than three years.
"This project was such a runt, this sort of messy-hair, dirty, wild child, and we just have been taken care of and just eased along until...
- 1/29/2012
- by AP
- Huffington Post
World Cinema Jury Special Prize, Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man, Malik Bendjelloul
World Cinema Documentary Editing: Indie Game: The Movie, Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky
World Cinema Jury Prize, Documentary: The Law in These Parts, Ra'anan Alexandrowicz
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Prize: Can, Rasit Celikezer
World Cinema Cinematography Award, Drama: David Raedeker, My Brother the Devil
World Cinema Cinematography Award, Documentary: Lars Skree, Putin's Kiss
World Cinema Directing Award, Documentary: Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi, 5 Broken Cameras
Best of Next Audience Award: Sleepwalk With Me, Mike Birbiglia
Audience Award, Shorts: The Debutante Hunters, Maria White
Audience Award, World Cinema Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man, Malik Bendjelloul
Audience Award, World Cinema: Valley of Saints, Musa Syeed
Audience Award, U.S. Documentary: The Invisible War, Kirby Dick
Audience Award, U.S. Drama: The Surrogate, Ben Lewin
World Cinema Jury Prize, Drama: Violeta Went to Heaven
World Cinema Directing Award, Drama: Teddy Bear,...
World Cinema Documentary Editing: Indie Game: The Movie, Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky
World Cinema Jury Prize, Documentary: The Law in These Parts, Ra'anan Alexandrowicz
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Prize: Can, Rasit Celikezer
World Cinema Cinematography Award, Drama: David Raedeker, My Brother the Devil
World Cinema Cinematography Award, Documentary: Lars Skree, Putin's Kiss
World Cinema Directing Award, Documentary: Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi, 5 Broken Cameras
Best of Next Audience Award: Sleepwalk With Me, Mike Birbiglia
Audience Award, Shorts: The Debutante Hunters, Maria White
Audience Award, World Cinema Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man, Malik Bendjelloul
Audience Award, World Cinema: Valley of Saints, Musa Syeed
Audience Award, U.S. Documentary: The Invisible War, Kirby Dick
Audience Award, U.S. Drama: The Surrogate, Ben Lewin
World Cinema Jury Prize, Drama: Violeta Went to Heaven
World Cinema Directing Award, Drama: Teddy Bear,...
- 1/29/2012
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Beasts of the Southern Wild, director Benh Zeitlin’s surreal tale of a six-year old girl living with her father in the flooded basins near the southern delta, was awarded the Grand Jury Prize for dramatic film. The House I Live In, Eugene Jarecki’s documentary about the impact of America’s War on Drugs on poor communities, won for best documentary. The Surrogate, a movie about a man in an iron lung (John Hawkes) who decides to lose his virginity with the assistance of professional sex surrogate (Helen Hunt), was honored with an Audience Award and a prize for Best Ensemble.
- 1/29/2012
- by Jeff Labrecque
- EW - Inside Movies
Just about every year around this time, many filmgoers complain that it has been disappointing experience at the cinema. Here at The Film Stage we’ve handpicked our select favorites in an attempt to disprove that theory. We count down the best films we’ve seen in the first eight months in order to give you a must-see list before we head into the busy awards season. We also count down a few awards contenders coming in the next few months that we’ve already had a chance to check out. See the list below in alphabetical order (and selection limited to Us theatrical releases) and let us know if we missed any of your favorites.
The Adjustment Bureau (George Nolfi)
Based on a short story by philosopher and sci-fi poet Philip K. Dick (he inspired Blade Runner, Minority Report and Total Recall), writer/director George Nolfi attempts to inject...
The Adjustment Bureau (George Nolfi)
Based on a short story by philosopher and sci-fi poet Philip K. Dick (he inspired Blade Runner, Minority Report and Total Recall), writer/director George Nolfi attempts to inject...
- 8/17/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
True Grit; Paul; Sanctum; Armadillo; Inside Job
The Coen brothers describe their handsome Oscar contender True Grit (2010, Paramount, 15) as an original adaptation of Charles Portis's novel, rather than a remake of the classic John Wayne movie. Certainly, the language of the Coens' script is that of its literary source, with none of the anachronistic dialogue which beset Henry Hathaway's film. Indeed, it's occasionally difficult to understand the spectacularly grizzled Jeff Bridges as he drawls authentically through a beard which looks even older and more manky than his stained undergarments.
Bridges plays Rooster Cogburn, a one-eyed bounty hunter (the eye patch comes from Wayne rather than Portis) on his last hurrah who agrees to track and retrieve the killer of a young girl's father. In the 1969 film, Mattie Ross was played rather more like a schoolma'am by a twentysomething Kim Darby. The Coens' ace card is newcomer Hailee Steinfeld,...
The Coen brothers describe their handsome Oscar contender True Grit (2010, Paramount, 15) as an original adaptation of Charles Portis's novel, rather than a remake of the classic John Wayne movie. Certainly, the language of the Coens' script is that of its literary source, with none of the anachronistic dialogue which beset Henry Hathaway's film. Indeed, it's occasionally difficult to understand the spectacularly grizzled Jeff Bridges as he drawls authentically through a beard which looks even older and more manky than his stained undergarments.
Bridges plays Rooster Cogburn, a one-eyed bounty hunter (the eye patch comes from Wayne rather than Portis) on his last hurrah who agrees to track and retrieve the killer of a young girl's father. In the 1969 film, Mattie Ross was played rather more like a schoolma'am by a twentysomething Kim Darby. The Coens' ace card is newcomer Hailee Steinfeld,...
- 6/11/2011
- by Mark Kermode
- The Guardian - Film News
A must-see for those not afraid of seeing and hearing a true statement of the horrors of war. Director Janus Metz Pedersen has a tiger by the tail in what will eventually be acknowledged as the most controversial war movie in decades. It may be the most controversial war film of all time. Director Pederson and his cinematographer Lars Skree had no way of knowing what would develop when they joined the army, put on a uniform and imbedded themselves into a unit of the 170 member International Security Assistance Force (Isaf). Isaf is responsible for providing security for the civilians located in a no man.s land of inter-tribal warfare at firebase Armadillo. The first half of...
- 5/24/2011
- by Ron Wilkinson
- Monsters and Critics
Movie review of 'Armadillo' directed by Janus Metz - Captures the action and the heartache of Danish soldiers in Afghanistan. Danish soldiers work out of Base Armadillo in Afghanistan and their stories fighting the Taliban make a fascinating documentary for Danish filmmaker Janus Metz. Armadillo is gripping like many war movies but also thoughtful, philosophical and surprisingly beautiful to watch at moments. It's clear that Metz (directing his third feature-length documentary) and his cameraman Lars Skree were embedded with the Danish soldiers during their three and a half months in Afghanistan. It's also evident that the young soldiers trusted Metz and their trust paid off in a strong documentary that tells their stories very well...
- 4/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Movie review of 'Armadillo' directed by Janus Metz - Captures the action and the heartache of Danish soldiers in Afghanistan. Danish soldiers work out of Base Armadillo in Afghanistan and their stories fighting the Taliban make a fascinating documentary for Danish filmmaker Janus Metz. Armadillo is gripping like many war movies but also thoughtful, philosophical and surprisingly beautiful to watch at moments. It's clear that Metz (directing his third feature-length documentary) and his cameraman Lars Skree were embedded with the Danish soldiers during their three and a half months in Afghanistan. It's also evident that the young soldiers trusted Metz and their trust paid off in a strong documentary that tells their stories very well...
- 4/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Movie review of 'Armadillo' directed by Janus Metz - Captures the action and the heartache of Danish soldiers in Afghanistan. Danish soldiers work out of Base Armadillo in Afghanistan and their stories fighting the Taliban make a fascinating documentary for Danish filmmaker Janus Metz. Armadillo is gripping like many war movies but also thoughtful, philosophical and surprisingly beautiful to watch at moments. It's clear that Metz (directing his third feature-length documentary) and his cameraman Lars Skree were embedded with the Danish soldiers during their three and a half months in Afghanistan. It's also evident that the young soldiers trusted Metz and their trust paid off in a strong documentary that tells their stories very well...
- 4/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Reviewed by Bob Hill
(April 2011)
Directed by: Janus Metz
It isn’t easy to win a war when you’re fighting an invisible target. This is one of the main challenges of the conflict in Afghanistan — a conflict punctuated by the fact that danger lurks around even the most isolated corners. Rapid-fire gunners spring up from hidden trenches. Rockets launch from far-off hills. The terrain is overrun with land mines.
It is into this hell that a group of young army recruits is thrust as members of
a Danish army platoon sent to patrol the Afghan province of Helmand. Embedded with them for six months in 2009, documentary filmmaker Janus Metz chronicles their journey from the days leading up to their deployment to their eventual return to Denmark.
What Metz captures in the months between is absolutely remarkable. He immerses himself so seamlessly into the background that you tend to forget he’s even there.
(April 2011)
Directed by: Janus Metz
It isn’t easy to win a war when you’re fighting an invisible target. This is one of the main challenges of the conflict in Afghanistan — a conflict punctuated by the fact that danger lurks around even the most isolated corners. Rapid-fire gunners spring up from hidden trenches. Rockets launch from far-off hills. The terrain is overrun with land mines.
It is into this hell that a group of young army recruits is thrust as members of
a Danish army platoon sent to patrol the Afghan province of Helmand. Embedded with them for six months in 2009, documentary filmmaker Janus Metz chronicles their journey from the days leading up to their deployment to their eventual return to Denmark.
What Metz captures in the months between is absolutely remarkable. He immerses himself so seamlessly into the background that you tend to forget he’s even there.
- 4/12/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Network
Reviewed by Bob Hill
(April 2011)
Directed by: Janus Metz
It isn’t easy to win a war when you’re fighting an invisible target. This is one of the main challenges of the conflict in Afghanistan — a conflict punctuated by the fact that danger lurks around even the most isolated corners. Rapid-fire gunners spring up from hidden trenches. Rockets launch from far-off hills. The terrain is overrun with land mines.
It is into this hell that a group of young army recruits is thrust as members of
a Danish army platoon sent to patrol the Afghan province of Helmand. Embedded with them for six months in 2009, documentary filmmaker Janus Metz chronicles their journey from the days leading up to their deployment to their eventual return to Denmark.
What Metz captures in the months between is absolutely remarkable. He immerses himself so seamlessly into the background that you tend to forget he’s even there.
(April 2011)
Directed by: Janus Metz
It isn’t easy to win a war when you’re fighting an invisible target. This is one of the main challenges of the conflict in Afghanistan — a conflict punctuated by the fact that danger lurks around even the most isolated corners. Rapid-fire gunners spring up from hidden trenches. Rockets launch from far-off hills. The terrain is overrun with land mines.
It is into this hell that a group of young army recruits is thrust as members of
a Danish army platoon sent to patrol the Afghan province of Helmand. Embedded with them for six months in 2009, documentary filmmaker Janus Metz chronicles their journey from the days leading up to their deployment to their eventual return to Denmark.
What Metz captures in the months between is absolutely remarkable. He immerses himself so seamlessly into the background that you tend to forget he’s even there.
- 4/12/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Magazine
The moral uncertainty of war is conveyed with devastating effect in a remarkable dispatch from Afghanistan's frontline
When you join the British army you're given (or used to be given) a document in a brown waterproof jacket called a pay book. Beginning with your name and number, it was part identity card, part record of your pay, part documentation of your shooting skills. This latter section was preceded by the statement: "Your Weapons Are Given to You to Kill the Enemy." I was reminded of this conjunction of a surrendered identity, the receipt of money and the implied licence to kill while watching Armadillo, a remarkable documentary directed by the Danish film-maker Janus Metz, and photographed with an astonishing mixture of lyricism, acute observation and gut-wrenching immediacy by Lars Skree. Both were embedded for six months in 2009 with a Danish infantry company operating in the Nato-led Isaf (International Security Assistance...
When you join the British army you're given (or used to be given) a document in a brown waterproof jacket called a pay book. Beginning with your name and number, it was part identity card, part record of your pay, part documentation of your shooting skills. This latter section was preceded by the statement: "Your Weapons Are Given to You to Kill the Enemy." I was reminded of this conjunction of a surrendered identity, the receipt of money and the implied licence to kill while watching Armadillo, a remarkable documentary directed by the Danish film-maker Janus Metz, and photographed with an astonishing mixture of lyricism, acute observation and gut-wrenching immediacy by Lars Skree. Both were embedded for six months in 2009 with a Danish infantry company operating in the Nato-led Isaf (International Security Assistance...
- 4/9/2011
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
Get a close-up glimpse into the harsh day-to-day realities of war with the trailer for award-winning documentary, Armadillo.
In February 2009 a group of Danish soldiers accompanied by documentary filmmaker Janus Metz arrived at Armadillo, an army base in the southern Afghan province of Helmand. Metz and cameraman Lars Skree spent over six months following the lives of young soldiers situated less than a kilometre away from Taliban positions.
The first documentary ever chosen to compete in the International Critics’ Week at Cannes (where it won the grand prize), Armadillo is released today.
Check out the film’s beautiful poster too (underneath the trailer)
Iframe Embed for Youtube...
In February 2009 a group of Danish soldiers accompanied by documentary filmmaker Janus Metz arrived at Armadillo, an army base in the southern Afghan province of Helmand. Metz and cameraman Lars Skree spent over six months following the lives of young soldiers situated less than a kilometre away from Taliban positions.
The first documentary ever chosen to compete in the International Critics’ Week at Cannes (where it won the grand prize), Armadillo is released today.
Check out the film’s beautiful poster too (underneath the trailer)
Iframe Embed for Youtube...
- 4/8/2011
- by Adam Lowes
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The calm before the summer blockbuster storm is here. We have a few bigger budget pictures to recommend, but April mostly includes limited releases from film festivals finally getting their theatrical debuts. Check out the list to see below and matinees on the next page.
See:
10. Your Highness (David Gordon Green; April 8th)
Synopsis: A fantasy-comedy about an arrogant, lazy prince (McBride) who must complete a quest in order to save his father’s kingdom.
Trailer
Why You Should See It: It isn’t as funny as Pineapple Express, but anything from this collective is worth checking out. Danny McBride and his bud Ben Best wrote the screenplay for this outrageous medieval/action/adventure/stoner comedy. I hope at least one of those words piques your interest.
9. Ceremony (Max Winkler; April 8th)
Synopsis: Sam Davis (Angarano) coerces his estranged friend to spend a weekend together in a beachside town, though...
See:
10. Your Highness (David Gordon Green; April 8th)
Synopsis: A fantasy-comedy about an arrogant, lazy prince (McBride) who must complete a quest in order to save his father’s kingdom.
Trailer
Why You Should See It: It isn’t as funny as Pineapple Express, but anything from this collective is worth checking out. Danny McBride and his bud Ben Best wrote the screenplay for this outrageous medieval/action/adventure/stoner comedy. I hope at least one of those words piques your interest.
9. Ceremony (Max Winkler; April 8th)
Synopsis: Sam Davis (Angarano) coerces his estranged friend to spend a weekend together in a beachside town, though...
- 4/1/2011
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The Cinema Eye Honors, devoted to highlighting the best of the year's nonfiction films, have flipped for Lixin Fan's fantastic "Last Train Home," which follows a family of migrant workers as they struggle to stay connected while living separated by hundreds of miles. "Last Train Home" received the most nominations -- seven -- while Banksy's "Exit Through The Gift Shop" and Afghanistan documentary "Armadillo" each received six. The award ceremony will take place on January 18 at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York, and will be broadcast on the Documentary Channel.
Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking
Armadilllo
Directed by Janus Metz
Produced by Sara Stockmann and Ronnie Fridthjof
Exit Through The Gift Shop
Directed by Banksy
Produced by Jaimie D'Cruz
Last Train Home
Directed by Lixin Fan
Produced by Mila Aung-Thwin and Daniel Cross
Marwencol
Directed by Jeff Malmberg
Produced by Jeff Malmberg, Tom Putnam, Matt Radecki, Chris Shellen...
Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking
Armadilllo
Directed by Janus Metz
Produced by Sara Stockmann and Ronnie Fridthjof
Exit Through The Gift Shop
Directed by Banksy
Produced by Jaimie D'Cruz
Last Train Home
Directed by Lixin Fan
Produced by Mila Aung-Thwin and Daniel Cross
Marwencol
Directed by Jeff Malmberg
Produced by Jeff Malmberg, Tom Putnam, Matt Radecki, Chris Shellen...
- 11/5/2010
- by Alison Willmore
- ifc.com
Janus Metz's Armadillo (photo: Lars Skree) (top); Joonas Berghäll and Mika Hotakainen's Steam of Life (middle); Patricio Guzmán's Nostalgia for the Light (bottom) Janus Metz's Armadillo, Joonas Berghäll and Mika Hotakainen's Steam of Life, and Patricio Guzmán's Nostalgia for the Light are the three documentaries nominated for the 2010 European Film Awards' Prix Arte, the European Film Academy announced today. Cannes 2010 Critics Week winner Armadillo, which caused a furor in Denmark, shows the brutality and viciousness of the war in Afghanistan, where Danish soldiers may have been guilty of war atrocities. As one soldier puts it, they "liquidated wounded people and piled up the dead to take pictures of ourselves as heroes." In Steam of Life, naked Finnish men discuss just about everything while sweating away in many of Finland's multifarious saunas. Set in Chile's Atacama desert, Nostalgia for the Light presents three disparate sets of activities...
- 10/27/2010
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
On the ninth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on America, I watched Armadillo, a Danish documentary about the war in Afghanistan, at the Toronto International Film Festival in Canada. I saw it because it seemed relevant and I had a few hours between films that I was actually excited for. I went in without any expectations, totally unaware that it would be the most thought-provoking film I would see that weekend.
Armadillo explores the War on Terror on a personal level through the eyes of a small group of soldiers who are deployed for the first time to Forward Operating Base Armadillo on the edge of the Helmand frontline in Afghanistan. Taliban territory lies 800 meters beyond the camp’s walls. As operations get intense and the war becomes a reality, their boredom turns to cynicism and anger. Getting shot at and watching friends fall, the soldiers, who were originally sent to help the locals,...
Armadillo explores the War on Terror on a personal level through the eyes of a small group of soldiers who are deployed for the first time to Forward Operating Base Armadillo on the edge of the Helmand frontline in Afghanistan. Taliban territory lies 800 meters beyond the camp’s walls. As operations get intense and the war becomes a reality, their boredom turns to cynicism and anger. Getting shot at and watching friends fall, the soldiers, who were originally sent to help the locals,...
- 9/14/2010
- by James Battaglia
- The Film Stage
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