Isabelle Huppert In conversation at the BFI

Isabelle Huppert at the NFT in London, 7th of May 2011

French actress Isabelle Huppert was presented with the British Film Institute's highest accolade last night at the National Film Theatre in London, the Fellowship, and I was lucky to attend. As per my previous post about the event, Isabelle Huppert might not be quite as known to an international audience as Catherine Deneuve or Juliette Binoche, yet she has had a long and consistantly interesting career that has spanned five decades so far and is showing so sign of slowing down!

The Brothers Quays, Kylie Minogue and the lesbian werewolf

I just love the way I never cease to be surprised by some film news. And indeed this is one of my favourite thing about cinema, the constant source of surprise, being the unexpected quality of a film, or just some unusual association of talents. Just over the last two weeks, we had Shakespearian British director Kenneth Branagh unexpected take on a Marvel superhero, Thor. Then we had period drama specialist Joe Wright, taking on the unusual modern and dark fairy tale of a teenage assassin in Hanna, featuring a pumping Chemical brothers sountrack. However, this is truly something else: the brothers Quays have been asked to direct the animated sections of otherwise live action lesbian werewolf romance Jack and Diane.

Schwarzenegger/DeVito: Twins 2! (The retirement home?)

Nobody remembers woeful 80's "comedy" Twins, featuring Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito as, you guessed it, twins ("hilarity" ensues). I only remember it because I watched it while on a school trip in Germany with my class back in 1989, and we spent the whole time swearing in French in the audience, safe in the knowledge that nobody would understand us, and that was by far the height of hilarity reached during the screening. (Oh hearing Schwarzenegger speak in German in the dubbed version we saw made us chuckle. I still remember the immortal line: 'Wir sind bruder!).

Is less truly more? Insidious

I watched Insidious as soon as it came out in the UK and I loved it. Not only that, while so many films make a big impression on me at the time, only to be instantly forgotten, this one has been lingering at the back of my mind like some vengeful spirit in waiting. The reviews were fairly positive, however there seems to be a consensus, as well as among the IMDB board, that the more suggestive first half is vasty superior to the second one where all hell break loose (literally), and I am not sure I agree.

Red nights: Freddy Krueger meets Wong Kar Wai by way of Story of O

I have stumbled across the trailer for a rather intriguing French film, called Red nights in English, which makes it sound like some bargain basement 80's action movie. The full French title however actually means The red nights of the jade executioner, whose pulp/exploitation tones give a fairer image of what the film is actually about.

Alexandre Aja hoping to adapt Cobra, the space pirate

For a second I thought I had been the victim of yet another wishful thinking hallucination. As I was reading  an article on the Variety website, the poster for "Cobra, the space pirate" directed by Alexandre Aja just flashed in front of my eyes. Then off it disappeared. It was not part of a banner or any advert on the site, it just vanished. Just as I was wondering if the website had created some kind of mind reading webcam marketing tool, Minority report style, offering its reader what they really, really wanted, a quick look on the web confirmed that indeed, the French director of Piranha 3D, High tension and The hills have eyes, was hoping to make this his next film.

Invasion of the not quite dead: The Tweetathon

I absolutely love this story so I have to share it. A zombie fan/nut, AD Lane, had made movie history by setting up the first tweetathon event to finance its film, Invasion of the not quite dead, in 2010. AD Lane had been seeking some more conventional financing means to no avail since 2007, so have decided to make this a fan-produced movie. And thanks to the success of the first tweetathon, he had made this a monthly event, in complete disregard for his own health and sanity.