A cinematic journey around Europe

Inspired by the BFI London Film Festival I attended earlier this month (it took place between the 2^nd and the 13^th of October 2019), I embarked on a cinematic journey around Europe. My first stop was the Nordic countries (‘A cinematic journey to the Nordic Countries’). As well as attending mainstream film festivals, such as the BFI London Film Festival, and the Leeds International Film Festival (due to take place from 6^th to 20^th November 2019), I also attend lesser-known ones, such as the European Psychoanalytic Film Festival (EPFF).  EPFF takes place in London every two years and is due to take place from 31^st October to 3^rd November 2019. Every time there is a different theme to the festival, and this year the theme is ‘The End’.

It is widely accepted that psychoanalysis and cinema, both born at the end of the nineteenth century, influence and enrich each other. Many filmmakers, such as Alfred Hitchcock, Bernardo Bertolucci and Nanni Moretti, to name just a few, have been influenced by psychoanalysis; and likewise, many psychoanalysts have been interested in film. Psychoanalytic film theory, developed in the 1970s, seeks to understand films from a psychoanalytic perspective. Film theorists Laura Mulvey and Christian Metz, inspired by the works of the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, have used psychoanalytic ideas to interpret films. There have been articles and books written reflecting on the use of psychoanalytic concepts in film and psychoanalytic film theory. Film festivals have been set up which focus on this very topic, such as the European Psychoanalytic Film Festival, which provides a forum for creative dialogues to take place between psychoanalysts, film scholars and filmmakers.

Another film festival currently taking place in London (from 24th to 28th October) is the Romanian Film Festival (now in its 15th year). The French Film Festival UK is due to take place next month (from 1st November to 15th December 2019).

A cinematic journey around Europe

I generally find film festivals a great opportunity to discover and watch films from other countries, as these are rarely shown in cinemas or on TV. As I wrote last week, I have only watched a small number of films from some European countries, so it wouldn’t be fair to talk about my ‘favorite’ films. I’d rather talk about those that come into my mind when thinking about these countries. This could be simply because I have seen a small number of films from there, or because these films have had an impact on me and have stayed in my mind. Or, possibly because of a combination of these reasons. Most of the films I will discuss are fairly recent ones; this reflects my own lack of familiarity with the classics, but also the fact that I got to know these European films mostly thanks to the film festivals.

Today, I continue my cinematic journey around Europe, and from Finland I move to the neighboring Baltic state of Estonia.

A cinematic journey to Estonia

Based on historical events that took place in the summer of 1941 on Stalin’s orders, ‘In the Crosswind’ (‘Risttuules’, 2014) tells the story of a family’s deportation from their home in Estonia to the frozen landscapes of Siberia. Inspired by a deported woman’s diary, Martti Helde uses a very interesting technique to tell this emotional story; he uses an unbroken series of tableaux vivants, a technique in which the actors stand still in dramatic poses while the camera weaves through them. In ‘Risttuules’, the lack of dialogue, as well as the black-and-white images, further enhances the effect of this technique. I was personally so impressed by the visual imagery and the emotional power of the film that I would include it amongst my favorite ones. I watched it at the 8^th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival in 2015, one year after its release.

Estonia and the Oscars

Estonia has only been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (or, the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, as it will be known as from 2020) once only. This was in 2014 for the film ‘Tangerines’ (‘Mandariinid’, 2013), which is actually an Estonian-Georgian film by Zaza Urushadze.

A cinematic journey to Russia

From Estonia, let’s now move to Russia, albeit not to Siberia like the Estonian family in ‘Risttuules’. In the same year that ‘Tangerines’ was nominated for the Oscar (2014), ‘Leviathan’ was also nominated for the same award. Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev, this Russian critically acclaimed film was shot in the coastal town of Teriberka, in Murmansk Oblast, the part of Russia bordering the Lapland region in Northern Finland, and North-eastern Norway. This was another film I watched at the 8^th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival.

Russia and the Oscars

Russia has won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film once. This was in 1994 with the film ‘Burnt by the Sun’ by Nikita Mikhalkov. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the country has been nominated 7 times in total. Russia’s most recent nomination was in 2017 for ‘Loveless’, Zvyagintsev’s latest film. Prior to 1991, the Soviet Union had won the Oscar 3 times.

A cinematic journey to Poland

Directed by Paweł Pawlikowski, ‘Ida’ is another film I watched at the 8^th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival. It was also the winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2014. It tells the story of a young woman who orphaned during World War II.  As she is about to take her vows to become a Catholic nun, she meets her aunt and finds out that her parents were in fact Jewish and were murdered during the war. The story takes place in the 1960s, and offers a rather different perspective to the Holocaust.

Poland and the Oscars

‘Ida’ is the only Polish film that has won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film out of the 10 that have been nominated for the prestigious award so far. The country’s most recent nomination was in 2018 for ‘Cold War’ (‘Zimna wojna’), Paweł Pawlikowski’s latest film.

Polish directors

Poland is the home country of two directors who have found success on an international level. Krzysztof Kieślowski is best known for the ‘Three Colors’ trilogy, which includes two films in French (‘Blue’ and ‘Red’) and one in Polish (‘White’). The three critically acclaimed films were released sequentially in the early 1990s, and are based on the national motto of France: Liberté, égalité, fraternité. They are named after the colors of the French flag. Even though they are part of a trilogy, their stories are largely independent of each other. ‘Red’ (1994) was nominated for three Academy Awards (Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Screenplay).

Born in Paris to Polish-Jewish parents, Roman Polaski is another famous Polish director, albeit notorious for evading American justice after pleading guilty to a rape charge. Some of his most celebrated films include ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968), ‘Chinatown’ (1974), and ‘The Pianist’ (2002). In 2002, he won the Academy Award for Best Director for ‘The Pianist’. This was his third nomination for that award.

A cinematic journey to Germany

From Poland, let’s now visit Germany. A film that stands out is ‘Victoria’ (2015) by Sebastian Schipper. Shot in one single continuous shot (134 minutes), it is a fine example of cinematic art. The camera follows a young Spanish woman living in Berlin; while the city is still asleep, Victoria wanders the streets of the German capital and soon finds herself involved in a bank robbery.

Oscar-nominated ‘Toni Erdmann’ (2016) by Maren Ade takes us to Romania, where the protagonist tries to re-connect with his daughter, whereas ‘In the Fade’ (‘Aus dem Nichts’, 2017) by Fatih Akin takes us back to Germany. When a German woman’s husband and son are killed in a terrorist attack perpetrated by neo-Nazis, who are then acquitted by the court, she follows them from Hamburg to Greece in an attempt to seek justice.

Germany and the Oscars

Following the reunification of West and East Germany in 1990, the country has won two Oscars for Best Foreign Language Film: in 2002 with ‘Nowhere in Africa’ (‘Nirgendwo in Afrika’) by Caroline Link, and four years later with ‘The Lives of Others’ (‘Das Leben der Anderen’) by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Germany’s most recent nomination was in 2018 for ‘Never Look Away’ (‘Werk ohne Autor’), Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s latest film. Prior to 1990 and the reunification, there had been another win in 1979 with ‘The Tin Drum’ (‘Die Blechtrommel’) by Volker Schlöndorff.

A cinematic journey to Austria

Let’s now move on to neighboring Austria. Despite being born in Munich, Germany, Michael Haneke is an Austrian national. His filmography includes French-language films such as ‘The Piano Teacher’ (‘La Pianiste’), which won the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix in 2001, ‘Caché’ (‘Hidden’), and ‘Amour’. The latter won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or in 2012, and is one of my favorite films. I watched it at the Leeds International Film Festival in November 2012. It tells the story of an elderly couple whose love is tested when one of them suffers a stroke. Unlike the previously mentioned films, ‘The White Ribbon’ (‘Das weiße Band’) is a German-language film. Even though it was nominated, it did not win the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009. Nonetheless, it won the Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or that year.

Other recent German-language films from Austria include ‘Breathing’ (‘Atmen’, 2011) by director and actor Karl Markovics, and ‘October November’ (‘Oktober November’, 2013) by Götz Spielmann. The latter stars Sebastian Koch, a German actor who also starred in ‘The Lives of Others’, and in the fifth season of the American TV series ‘Homeland’. I watched these two films at the 7^th and 8^th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival respectively.

Austria and the Oscars

The first time that Austria won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film was in 2007 with ‘The Counterfeiters’ (‘Die Fälscher’) by Stefan Ruzowitzky. It starred Karl Markovics, the director of ‘Breathing’. As previously mentioned, the country won the Academy Award again in 2012 with ‘Amour’.

A cinematic journey to Belgium

When I think of Belgian films, the first one to come to mind is ‘Two Days, One Night’ (‘Deux jours, une nuit’, 2014) directed by the Dardenne brothers, and starring Marion Cotillard. Set in Liège, it follows a factory worker in her attempt to keep her job. To prevent her dismissal, she has to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses.

Belgium and the Oscars

Belgium has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film seven times (but never won). The most recent nomination was in 2013 with ‘The Broken Circle Breakdown’ by Felix Van Groeningen.

A cinematic journey to Spain

Moving South, I visit Spain, the homeland of Pedro Almodóvar. The Spanish filmmaker has written and directed more than 20 feature films, since his debut in 1980. His filmography includes the critically appraised ‘Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown’ (‘Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios’, 1988), which was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, and the Oscar-winners ‘All About My Mother’ (‘Todo sobre mi madre’, 1999) and ‘Talk to Her’ (‘Hable con ella’, 2002). The former won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, whereas the latter won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Other note-worthy Almodóvar films include ‘Live Flesh’ (‘Carne Trémula’, 1997), ‘Volver’ (2006), ‘Broken Embraces’ (‘Los abrazos rotos’, 2009), ‘I’m So Excited!’ (2013), and his latest ‘Pain and Glory’ (‘Dolor y gloria’, 2019). Penélope Cruz, who starred in ‘All About My Mother’, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in ‘Volver’, plays in all these films.

Pedro Almodóvar may be my favorite and the most famous representative of the Spanish cinema, but he is far from the only one. I recently watched ‘The Invisible Guest’ (‘Contratiempo’, 2016) by Oriol Paulo, a mystery film shot in Catalonia.  In 2018, an Italian remake, ‘The Invisible Witness’ (‘Il testimone invisibile’), directed by Stefano Mordini, was released.

Spain and the Oscars

Spain has won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film four times: in 1982 with ‘Begin the Beguine’ (‘Volver a Empezar’) by José Luis Garci, in 1993 with ‘Belle Epoque’ by Fernando Trueba, in 1999 with ‘All About My Mother’ (‘Todo sobre mi madre’) by Pedro Almodóvar, and in 2004 with ‘The Sea Inside’ (‘Mar adentro’) by Alejandro Amenábar.

A cinematic journey to Italy

So many films and filmmakers come to mind when I think of Italian cinema. For instance, ‘Il Postino’ (1994), by Michael Radford and Massimo Troisi, ‘The Son’s Room’ (‘La stanza del figlio’, 2001) by Nanni Moretti.

One of the most famous Italian filmmakers, Federico Fellini won the Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or for ‘La Dolce Vita’ in 1960, as well as the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film for four of his films (thus holding the record for the most wins of that Oscar for any director).

Equally famous is Bernardo Bertolucci, who directed landmark films including ‘The Conformist’ (1970), ‘Last Tango in Paris’ (1972), ‘The Last Emperor’ (1987), and ‘Little Buddha’ (1993). In 2013, I watched his last film, ‘Me and You’ (‘Io e te’), at the 7th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival. Afterwards, I was honored to participate in a discussion with Bertolucci himself, Honorary President of the festival.

Then, two years later, at the 8^th European Psychoanalytic Film Festival, I watched another Italian film, ‘Human Capital’ (‘Il capitale umano’) by Paolo Virzì. The film is based on the novel ‘Human Capital’ by American author Stephen Amidon; an American remake, directed by Marc Meyers, has recently been released.

Some other Italian films I’ve watched in the last few years include ‘The Dinner’ (‘I nostri ragazzi’, 2014) by Ivano De Matteo, and ‘The Girl in the Fog’ (‘La ragazza nella nebbia’, 2017) by David di Donatello. In ‘The Dinner’, the story follows two brothers and their families; tensions arise when their children beat a homeless woman to death. Dealing with the theme of crime and punishment, the film is based on the novel of the same name by Dutch author Herman Koch. There has also been a Dutch adaptation of the novel (‘Het Diner‘, 2013) by Menno Meyjes, as well as an American one (2017), directed by Oren Moverman. ‘The Girl in the Fog’ is also based on a novel (by Donato Carrisi). Set in a mountain village, this Italian thriller follows the investigation of a teenager’s disappearance.

Italy and the Oscars

As of 2018, Italian films have won 14 Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film (the most of any country). The list includes ‘Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow’ (‘Ieri, oggi, domani’, 1963) by Vittorio De Sica and starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni, ‘Cinema Paradiso’ (1988) by Giuseppe Tornatore, ‘Life Is Beautiful’ (‘La vita è bella’, 1997) by and starring Roberto Benigni, and more recently ‘The Great Beauty’ (‘La grande bellezza’, 2013) by Paolo Sorrentino. In 1987, ‘The Last Emperor’ (‘L’ultimo imperatore’) by Bernardo Bertolucci won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

A cinematic journey to Greece

The final stop of this cinematic journey around Europe (at least, for this week) is my home country, Greece.

Long before Yorgos Lanthimos rose to prominence, another Greek filmmaker, Theo Angelopoulos, was the one carrying the flag of the Greek cinema. A writer and director, he was nominated for the Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or five times; he won the prestigious award in 1998 for the film ‘Eternity and a Day’. It’s a fine example of Theo’s critically appraised cinematic method, which has often been described as hypnotic.

Unfortunately, Theo passed away in 2012 while shooting his latest film, ‘The Other Sea’. Later that year, I watched a lesser-known Greek film, the ‘Boy Eating the Bird’s Food’ by Ektoras Lygizos, at the Leeds International Film Festival. Produced amidst the socio-economic crisis that had begun a few years earlier, this powerful film deals with poverty in modern Greece.

More recently, also at the Leeds International Film Festival, I watched ‘Suntan’ (2016) by Argyris Papadimitropoulos. The story takes us to the small Cycladic island of Antiparos, where a middle-aged doctor becomes infatuated with a much younger woman spending her summer holidays there. 

Greece and the Oscars

Greece has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film five times (but never won). The first nomination was in 1962 with ‘Electra’ by Michael Cacoyannis. In 1971, ‘Iphigenia’ was another film by the same director that was nominated for the Oscar. Both these films were based on ancient Greek tragedies written by Euripides. In 1964, ‘Zorba the Greek’, also directed by Cacoyannis, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

The most recent nomination for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film was in 2010 with ‘Dogtooth’ directed and co-written by Yorgos Lanthimos. In 2016, Lanthimos was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his first English-language feature film ‘The Lobster’. Other notable films both written and directed by Lanthimos are ‘Alps’ (2011) and ‘The Killing of a Sacred Deer’ (2017).

In 2018, ‘The Favourite’, a film directed (but not written) by Lanthimos and starring Olivia Colman, was nominated for ten Academy Awards, including for Best Picture and Best Director. Colman won the Academy Award for Best Actress.

In 1960, Greek composer Manos Hatzidakis won the Academy Award for Best Original Song with the now classic ‘Ta Pediá tou Pireá’. The Oscar-winning song was first performed in Greek by Melina Merkouri in the film ‘Never on Sunday’ by Jules Dassin. It has since been recorded in quite a few languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Dutch, Yiddish, Polish, Czech, Serbian, Croatian, Slovenian, Cantonese, Mandarin, and Portuguese. Melina was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress, and so far she is the only actor nominated for a Greek-language role.

A cinematic journey to France

As both a cinephile and Francophile, I have always been interested in the French cinema, and naturally the French Film Festival (due to take place from 2nd to 9th November 2019) has provided a space to watch French films. Join me next week, as my cinematic journey around Europe continues to France.

À bientôt!

Alex

(the Traveling Psychiatrist)