Characters in 'Full Scope' mirror Russia's post-Soviet identity crisis
It's not everyday you see a President Putin look-alike frolicking in a ripped vest - but then the Cairo Film Festival does open windows onto all sorts of worlds.Valery Pendrakovsky's…
Trying to catch the moon in a bottle, Euro-whimsy style
What color is the universe? Beige, according to one of the many eccentric characters of "La Luna en Botella. This jolly little question is a snippet that fits neatly into…
War-torn hearts and battered minds
I hadn't intended to see "Battle for Haditha. Out of personal choice, I had decided not to. But as usual Cairo Film Festival cock-up would have it, "Reservoir Dogs could…
A bittersweet piece of 'Caramel'
A horde of filmgoers rushed to Good News Cinema last Wednesday to catch Lebanese actor/director Nadine Labaki's much heralded directorial debut "Caramel. Defying the pervading rule of Arabic movies, the…
Harvey Keitel press conference turns into a carnival of hypocrisy
A press conference with American superstar Harvey Keitel surprisingly turned into a statement of hypocrisy and candid discrimination following a question about the actor's film "The Last Temptation of the…
Gagarin's Surprise
Russian film "Gagarin s Grandson is about two long-lost brothers finding one another and learning how to live together. There s just one little wrinkle: The young one is black…
Fighting the war within
L ennimi Intime opens to a confusing setting: a battalion of French and Algerian soldiers is spearheading a series of operations in the heart of Algeria during the Arab country…
Who will win and who should win
Unlike last year, the main international competition has been a major disappointment. The quality of most of the films ranged from below average to mediocre. Even the few good ones…
A letdown even to skeptics
Even those who had modest expectations for the Annapolis conference were disappointed by its results: an agreement to start negotiations and a statement that selectively reiterated parts of the roadmap…
NO to violence against women: breaking walls of silence
November 25 marked the annual day for violence against women. It was also the beginning of a United Nations-led 16-day campaign entitled "Say NO to Violence Against Women . "Violence…