Jameson Dublin International Film Festival

A big fan of film festivals and especially film festivals, this is my 4^th since October 2014. Three in the US and this one. The set up is different than any I’ve been to before. My review is late however my phone and laptop were stolen so I’ve had limited access to wifi. Truth be told I did not enjoy this as much as other festivals and I think its down to logistics, customer svc and organisation, also the spread out venues. Like I said, I’ve been to my share of film festivals and I’m just speaking from my experience. What I like about the other festivals was the 100% access to directors or writers etc after each film you attend. This was not available and also on the nights of events information about other evens wasn’t always available. It seemed a bit higeldy pigeldy.

I had the opportunity to go and see A Master Builder tks to Unilocal.
I think this film is one where you will have to see again as it is very complex !
It’s no the run of the mill film but no less a well made, acted film.
It’s a film based on a play and you can tell by the well scripted but over complexed story .
Definetly worth a viewing and I think it’s great that Jameson film festival runs these !

(The Falling)
Considering time+location+movie I went to watch The Falling at the Light House Cinema in Smithfield. I have never been to this cinema before and I actually enjoyed it a lot.
The Festival was very interesting this year. Although I did not get ticket from Unilocal I got a offer online — bring a friend and pay half price (2 people 15 euros). I bought one extra ticket and went with 2 other friends. Im glad I bought tickets in advance because the place was packed. We couldn’t even seat together.
Well, the movie. It is not that type of film you see in mainstream cinema. That girl from Game of thrones was in the movie (Arya), Maisie Willians — now I know her name =) I wont go trough the whole plot, but Lydia (Maisie) was obsessed with a friend, this friend died and she started having health issues — fainting and hallucinations. Her behaviour had a strong influence on her friends at school and all girls started to act like her. In the end they conclude it was a case of mass hysteria — it made sense.
The film was very intense and psychologic. Most of the time you need to guess what is going on or why the characters are doing what they do. There is a incest in the movie and it is a kinda of disturbing at first, but after some story it is possible to conclude that she was so obsessed with the friend who died that she wants to do everything she did, including sexual intercourse with her own brother.
At the end, more things to guess. Maybe she fixed her troubles with her mother. Maybe not. The producer of the movie was there to Q&A session and I didn’t know that previously. I couldnt stay and make her a few questions only for clarification.

Saw Hardkor Disko on Thursday. Very odd and mysterious movie I have to say where the prime aim of the main character is murder. The festival itself is very well organised and love the light house cinema.

The opening weekend of the festival I had the chance of viewing The Water Diviner, Cobain: Montage from Heck, While We’re Young, and Listen Up Philip (All lovely films). The Water Diviner was at the Savoy, while the other three were at Cineworld.
Tonight I had the pleasure of viewing The Falling (2015) at The Lighthouse Cinema.
This was my first visit to The Lighthouse Cinema. In which I must say it was colorful. Maybe kind of distracting because of the art gallery feel, however, to be appreciated, and certainly a nice atmosphere to enjoy a coffee/​sandwich (which they do serve!). There’s perfectly arranged seating for conversation, multiple levels, a dim yet glistening wall of lights, then you walk into the theater and all the seats are different colors (blues, oranges, purples, reds, greens, yellows).
The premise of The Falling focuses around a girl and her friend attending an all denominational girls school set in 1969. Something happens to the girls friend, and a condition of mass psychogenic illness breaks out.
Luckily the director was there to speak about the film after, because honestly I wasn’t sure how much I was going to be able to get into this review. There were multiple things happening in the film. The mass psychogenic illness is suppose to represent the sexual anxiety of the end of the 1960s. There’s a lot of connection with nature and young girls growing up. The illness is also suppose to leave us wondering what’s actually going on, so there is a super natural element to it — depending if you think it’s an illness or something a little less explainable. There’s also a second story with the relationship between the girl and her mother. A lot is happening, but in the end it all connects. I don’t really want to go into too much detail and give away any spoilers. Though a sense of uncertainty relating to the unexplainable mass psychogenic illness lies throughout the film, there is closure at the end to at least one element of the girls life.
Overall, I was thinking of The Virgin Suicides and Girl Interrupted, as references to what kind of movie you might be getting into.

Pressure (2015)
A film, set in a submarine, called Pressure. First thoughts: the title is a little obvious, but one that does convey quickly the supposed narrative without any need for explanation.
The premise of the 90 minute feature is a large energy firm, sent out into the ocean to mend oil pipelines on the seabed. Despite awareness that the ship is due to hit a storm, a small crew of four are sent down in a sub to repair the lines — a subtle hint at corporate greed overtaking the concern for preservation of life.
The majority of the film takes place in the tiny confines of the diving vessel, generating an immense feeling of claustrophobia. The sheer weight of the water is well emphasised throughout, and the title becomes increasingly apt as time rolls on. Pressure, both physical and emotional, builds and builds. However, considering there is a cast of essentially four key people, the character development is incredibly lacking. Despite some stellar acting, the plot never materialises into more than a one dimensional story-​line about four men fighting for their lives underwater. It comes close, at times, to an emotional peak but it never quite reaches its potential and as a result you begin to lose empathy.
The occasional clumsy flashback comes across as forced and inconsistent with the tone of the rest of the film. Without the commitment to the story behind the characters, there becomes a lack of emotional investment to their fate. There is admittedly flashes of brilliance, brought to life by a great cast. The moment of realisation that the firm they had so passionately dedicated their lives to had abandoned them pulls at the heart strings, and the final scene in the water is stunningly executed. A beautifully haunting shot of the vessel underwater conveys the isolation and desperation of their situation and comic flashes break the intensity throughout,
In the end, Pressure was enjoyable yet frustrating. Although a thoroughly watchable film, the half-​hearted attempt at character development left me with more questions than answers — and not in a good ‘made me think’ type of way. The end scene was unnecessary and while beautifully shot, the entire narrative was missing that je né sais quois. The potential is there… it just never quite reached it!

I had the great fortune of seeing The Dark Horse at Cineworld. Before I even start my critique of the movie I was actually very impressed with the organization and representation of the people from the Jameson Film Festival. As I thought I was just going to see a normal movie instead of the ones with famous celebrities– I was actually very impressed with how well everything was coordinated. There were lots of people who could answer questions and point us in the right direction.
As for the movie– GO SEE IT, RENT IT, PRE ORDER ON NETFLIX– DO WHAT YOU MUST! My movie going experience is pretty average and seeing independent movies isn’t always high on my list of things to do. However this completely sold me. You literally ride a roller coaster of emotion. The best way to watch a movie is to go in with no expectations and having watched no trailers.
Based on a true story, Genesis is one of the most likable characters I have watched in a long time. The actor who played him has a natural ability to switch from crazy to lovable in a blink of an eye. It is a dramatic movie but laced with great comedy moments. While I wouldn’t call it a sports movie it is based around Genesis who has recently been released from a mental institute. Having gone to live with his Gang Leader brother Ariki, Gen quickly realizes his life is in need of ‘stability’. Genesis joins a local community group for children and sets forth on a plan to bring them to the National Chess championship in Auckland.
There are some great monologues where you hear of Maui stories of old and you hang on every word just as the children do in the movie. While his goal is to lead the children to a better understanding of life outside of the corrupt and poor world they live in, Genesis’ main worry is protecting his nephew Mana from the gang his father has raised him in. I don’t want to give away anymore so just go and watch for yourself.
While it is a long movie you don’t feel itchy to get home. I have already recommended this movie to everyone I have seen and can’t wait to go back and watch another movie as part of the JDIFF.

The Dark Horse, based on true events in the life of Genesis Potini, is a hugely evocative and ultimately uplifting piece of film-​making, given the often incredibly dark subject matter.
Upon being released from a psychiatric hospital into the care of his estranged older brother, Genesis finds himself in the center of an intimidating world of crime and gangs. A former chess genius, and desperate for stability and focus, Genesis joins the local childrens chess club that ultimately becomes his and their redemption.
It’s not hard to see why Cliff Curtis’ performance as Genesis picked up the Best Actor award at the New Zealand Film Awards, as well as the films number of other well deserved accolades at home and internationally. Thoroughly enjoyable, if somewhat clichéd in parts, (see violent beatings as eerie music box music plays), this film made for an excellent evenings viewing and enjoyment soaking up the Jameson film festival atmosphere.

With the film preserved in its original language and interesting characters, this piece made for a decent show. Tu Dors Nicole — featured many scenes that seemed to never succinctly reach an ending. This leaves more for the imagination as the viewer is left trying to understand what happened with the female band member, when she called saying she was at the hospital. However, mere seconds later it seems she is found phoning and asking, «where’s the nearest hospital?»
Another example is when the drummer, who begins to fall for Nicole after many random times of them spending time together alone, is kicked out of the band essentially never to be heard from again. Although he reappears in a later scene, there is not much information given to the viewer in regard to his whereabouts or even a real reason for him being kicked out. The only reason provided was that he could not play the drums right.
Perhaps the directors intention was to emphasize the visual aspect of the film to stimulate the viewers mind, rather than having lots of dialogue. Its French-​Canadian makeup is unique and one element that makes the film interesting.
Much of the directors comedy comes with audio and visual work, whereas there may be less dialogue. This can be humorous in a subtle yet funny way. It is the kind of humor that evokes a playful laughter that the viewer doesn’t dare let loose, for fear that they might miss another subtle que or they may be the only bold one found laughing out loud.
Once scene shows Martin the little boy, with an unrealistically deep voice, that Nicole babysits in a tent outside. He is playing a game and making all of the sound effects and narrations to go with it. Then Nicole shows up unannounced and offers to play together. The noise coming from the tent suddenly ceases. This is followed by a period of silence, where the boy has just been yanked out of his dream and realizes that somebody was listening. He then responds, «We can take a bath.» This alludes to the fervent crush the boy has on Nicole. He is much younger yet has an unrealistically deep voice, likely not his real one yet it is quite humorous for the comedy of it. His crush on Nicole is one that is quite funny as well, since he seems to ignore the fact that there is a considerable age difference.
ALl of this being said, Nicole’s character is a bit of a depressing one at times as she continuously falls upon bad luck. However the light touches of humor and transitioning music, or the loud music of her brother’s band, complete the piece as an overall package.

The festival itself seems very well organised; lots of friendly staff ready to help on arrival at the lighthouse cinema– a spectacularly wonderful venue with bars, bean bags and fairy lights everywhere– a very relaxed vibe and definitely somewhere I will return to.
The film I saw was called ‘The Tribe’; set in a Ukranian deaf boarding school there is no spoken dialogue and no subtitles– the characters communicate only in Ukranian sign language meaning that all (or certainly the vast majority) of the audience relies only on visuals to understand the storyline. You do forget this as the film progresses and become accustomed to it in the same way you might when watching a foreign language film, reminded only when the cast are having longer conversations that you actually don’t know what’s being said– does make you think about what it might be like to be deaf in a hearing environment.
The storyline was pretty shocking, some very graphic scenes depicting the lives of a group of teenagers encompassing teen sex, rape, abortion, prostitution and trafficking– I was left feeling pretty battered. It’s brutal and gritty and makes for quite uncomfortable viewing, but you get the impression that that’s sort of the point.
Some long ‘hand-​held’ style shots and some great moments that I personally thought ‘surely you’d hear them coming’ before catching myself and realising that of course they don’t.
Certainly interesting, if pretty dark.

The Model Couple is a older film from the 70’s which depicts an average couple. Complete with English subtitles, this French film is upheld by an interesting plot around measuring an average couples every move. In the beginning you are pulled in by the couple being relateable however the plot is slightly lost towards the end by sudden events that were confusing. It may have been a language barrier in the subtitles that unfortunately made me loose the plot but I was thrown off by the ending. I think the concept of using an average couple to figure out the «measure of people», what they like to buy and use and compare it to their daily habits is fascinating! The movie is worth seeing if you are looking for a different alternative. The background music is funky and fun especially in the famous kitchen scene.
I would give The Model Couple film a ³⁄₅ because it was a good movie and it made me walk away thinking about it however I would need to watch it again to fully understand the last part of the film. It would be fun to watch with a significant other and chat after about how you compare to Claudine and JM. (JM is a very loveable character and Claudine is so innocent and naïve in the film as newlyweds.) It touches upon themes such as love, manipulation, and trust.
I would give the overall JDIFF a ⁵⁄₅ because of the wonderful efforts put forth to create a sense of creativity and accomplishment among International film history. Bringing in old films and introducing new films is a great way to commemorate film. I was at the opening night with the red carpet and loved that although it is an international festival, they were hosting some wonderful Irish talent like Brendan Gleeson.

The Model Couple.
This piece is a so-​called «reality show» in the period of the eighties, with elements of art and science put together. For me as a viewer wasn’t easy to capture individual elements. The plot of this movie did not fall in to the level of: plot and climax, which is totally not bad at all. Storyline was monotonous and sometimes speed — up camera trick reminds me of «Benny Hill show» This art, I would say is a classic from that era, when a person is trying to intimidate future of his own points of view on things as they would like to be seen without waiting. The result is a chaotic demonstration plot, without strong justification. The Model Couple you will watch till the end, or you will leave it at the very beginning. I stayed till the end.

Film Review — «Lawrence of Belgravia»
The film is about a guy called Lawrence, of the title, at the end of his failed career. He has been driven all his life by the desire to be rich and famous and his love of great music, went through several bands but never made it, produced numerous records that failed to sell off the charts, and never changes his hat! He says in his own words that he never connected with his parents, and wanted to become famous to avoid having to be around the miserable masses.
So why in the end would we want to spend 86 minutes with him? What Paul Kelly gives us in this film is the portrayal of a man certain of his destiny to be famous. The film intercuts scenes of him talking to multiple interviewers about his life, friendships, music, and random ramblings, numerous wide shots of London’s rooftops, and several scenes of him performing in his bands. The film is nicely photographed and Kelly works hard to establish a sense of location and gives the film a downtrodden sense that reflects Lawrence’s life, and he shoots everything very close up and allows the primary voice of the film to be that of Lawrence himself. And there are plenty of opportunities to laugh with and at his humorous and innocent comments which really bring to mind Nigel from «Spinal Tap»
The film was clearly a labor of love and took a long time to make. It has an audience that comprises almost exclusively of hard-​core Lawrence/​Go Kart Mozart fans, and there is little in this film that will keep anyone else from fidgeting in their chair and looking at their watch. In the end, the film has passion but lacks forward direction and allows its subject to ramble too much… and some may be annoyed by the music.

The Festival is very well organized. I am not reviewing the Festival but the
movie Lawrence of Belgravia.
The plot of this documentary revolves around the life of Lawrence and his
several attempts at fulfilling his dreams of fame.
I had never heard of him before but watching the movie I could see his
wishes falling apart. He was part of 3 different bands throughout his
career: Felt, Denim and the latest one, Go Kart Mozart. Three decades
trying so hard to be famous, to be someone or as he says, to avoid having
to live with everyone else and to take the subway.
The photography shows us around London and Birmingham, recording studios
and many rehearsals, in between interviews that portrays him as an odd
man with different preferences such as genital mutilation… which was the point where I went «uhh…seriously??» I chose not to stick around for the Q&A!
Is he good? Have his bands ever been good? Could things have been different
for him or he is living and seeking an illusion? At the end, this is up to the
viewer to decide.

The Festival Opening Night
The festival launch night started at the Savoy cinema with Neil Jordan’s new feature «Ondine», in which Colin Farrell catches a seal-​woman in his fishing net and takes her home with him. Despite the breathtaking photography and beautiful production design, the film doesn’t really work: mostly because it’s about Colin Farrell catching a seal-​woman in his net and taking her home with him.
Even so, the opening had that undeniable air of showbiz excitement about it – which has never been Dublin’s biggest selling point — and I was looking forward to rubbernecking at all the stars on the red carpet. Unfortunately, my other half whisked me right into the cinema and then said, oh, you didn’t want to stand there rubbernecking at all the stars, did you? I laughed and said god no, of course not.
After the screening there was a party at Lillie’s Bordello on Grafton Street. I was disappointed to realise that Lillie’s is actually just a nightclub and not a brothel as I had previously thought it was.
The festival runs from 18−28^th February and is currently in mid-​swing. Listings can be found here:

The Dublin Film Festival is a tribute to all those who organise it and all the venues who participate in making this an amazing 10 days. It’s coming up quickly, the 2010 dates are 18 Feb to 28 Feb! They have an amazing show case of indie and international films as well as some large blockbuster style films. It’s definitely worth a review of the schedule online or the book length programme that you can get at any of the venues. If there’s anything particular that you really want to see I suggest booking ahead of time because seats go quickly. I once went to try and see a random Czech film that I thought no one would see but it sounded amazing, something to do with Hitler’s butler, but alas when I got there all the tickets were gone! Like Rob pointed out they’ve got all kinds of cool things going on besides the movies and a lot of times the directors or actors will be at the screening. It’s always a delight when you see a mind blowingly crazy film to ask the director what was going through his head right after you’ve seen it. Most definitely worth a visit!

Me and a few of my friends bought tickets to 15 different films for JDIFF as p[art of a college society outing and it was definitely worth it. I’d recommend getting a full pass to this and maybe even taking a week off work if you’re serious about your movies. There are gala screenings and premieres, often with cast and directors/​writers/​producers attending. I went to see Anvil! The story of Anvil here and thought it was amazing. Then, out of nowhere, Anvil themselves came into the cinema screen and started playing a full on stadium rock gig right after the credits rolled. We also got goodie bags, magazines and even tickets to a few films that hadn’t sold out. That’s what you can expect from JDIFF.