“The Wackness” was a total shocker! With package full of cinematic pleasure: witty script, nostalgic 90’s music, and pleasing performances by young actors alongside GROOOOVYYYY Sir. Kingsley and Famke Janssen, nothing more can possibly be asked from this 110-minute tasteful journey. During the market screening at Berlinale, I noticed numbers of happy French faces:) its performance in the rest of the international markets vastly interests me.
Another lovely film that is worth mentioning after Berlinale premiere was “Hey Hey It’s Esther Blueburger.” It’s an Australian coming-of-age comedy of a nerdy Jewish girl who learns “to be different” is totally ok. Talking to God through toilet and break-dancing at your bar mitzvah might be quite extreme, however, you will be amazed how much you can actually identify yourselves with this girl and the characters surrounds her. Also, if you claim yourself as a “Napoleon Dynamite” worshipper, it’s a must-see: )
I haven’t seen “Hey Hey It’s Esther Blueburger” but it looks totally awesome. Its produced by Mtv and it has Toni Collete in it, who think is one of the most talented female actresses today. I can’t wait for this film to be released in the USA.
In this movie, you won’t be able to take your eyes off from 3 young actors: Danielle Catanzariti (Esther), Christian Byers (Esther’s twin brother Jacob) and Keisha Castle-Hughes. Tony Collete was astonishing as usual…. I am dying to watch “The Black Balloon” which also Collete stars and was premiered in Berlin.
Halim Cillov
In every film festival, there is always one or two films, that you (or the critics) don’t think will be that good or impressive, and yet once you see this film, it completely surprises you. For me and also for many critics, I think so far, the biggest surprise for “The Wackness.” I didn’t expected much from this film, however, it was an great coming-of-age movie with amazing performances from Ben Kingsley. There is already a huge Buzz about this film in New York, and it hasn’t even opened in NYC, regardless of the fact that the whole movie was shot in New York… I wonder what are the other surprises or highlights of the festival for other people?