CONTEMPORARY WORLD CINEMA AT EnergaCAMERIMAGE 2019

Thursday October 31st, 2019

We announce the line-up of the Contemporary World Cinema section of the 27th edition of EnergaCAMERIMAGE Film Festival.

BLACK AND BLUE

Black rookie policewoman Alicia West wanted to, above all, protect and serve the citizens of New Orleans, but after the first few weeks of doing her best at the new job, she finds herself in an unenviable situation. While doing a night shift, she witnesses a murder committed by other police officers, and records the whole thing on her body cam. This means that the dirty cops from her unit start to chase her relentlessly in order to get the footage back. At the same time, the local community does not trust the girl who betrayed them and joined the police force. Together with an accidental ally she found in a grocery shop owner, Alicia tries to save her life and clear her name.

Director: Deon Taylor
Cinematographer: Dante Spinotti
Produced by: Hidden Empire Film Group, Royal Viking Entertainment, Screen Gems
Country and year: USA, 2019

HIDDEN LIFE, A

This film, based on real events, tells the story of Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter, who refused to swear an oath to Adolf Hitler during World War II, and in doing this, he risked not only his own life, but also the lives of his loved ones. We observe how the Jägerstätters fell in love and decided to have children, how they work hard in the fields and try to live in accordance with the natural cycle, and how they stand together against the ideological pressure of the outside world. Will Franz let the Nazis break his moral code, or will he sacrifice both his own and his family’s well-being for the sake of his principles?

Polish title: Ukryte życie
Director: Terrence Malick
Cinematographer: Jörg Widmer
Produced by: Elizabeth Bay Productions, Studio Babelsberg AG
Polish distributor: Imperial CinePix Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: Germany, USA, 2019

I'LL FIND YOU

Before the outbreak of World War II, the Polish city of Łódź was both multicultural and unusual, a place developing its own intricate rhythm, and filled with beautiful dreamers waiting for life to fulfil its many promises. Among them, the Jewish violinist Rachel Rubin and talented singer Robert Pułaski, two young and ambitious music school students with a shared dream of one day performing at the legendary Carnegie Hall in New York, but the war erases the entire generation’s plans. While Robert forgets about his “American Dream”, he does not want to let the love of his life another of the war’s victims. The journey to find Rachel will change him forever.

Original title: Znajdę cię
Director: Martha Coolidge
Cinematographer: Alexander Gruszynski
Produced by: MUSIC, WAR AND LOVE LLC
Country and year: USA, 2019

IT: CHAPTER TWO

It has been 27 years since the members of “The Losers’ Club” fought the bloodthirsty Pennywise the Clown. The kids have grown up, moved to different places across America, and forgotten about the traumatic events from their childhood. Mike was the only one who stayed in Derry, and one day he starts calling around his former friends to ask them to return to the town they fled a long time ago. The Losers do not actually comprehend that the reason for this is Pennywise – the monster has woken up once again and has begun to devour the innocent. Will the adults be able to conquer their greatest fears and stand together as a group to face the evil lurking in the shadows?

Polish title: To: Rozdział 2
Director: Andy Muschietti
Cinematographer: Checco Varese
Produced by: KatzSmith Productions, Lin Pictures, New Line Cinema, Rideback, Vertigo Entertainment
Polish distributor: Warner Bros. Entertainment Polska Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: Canada, USA, 2019

JOJO RABBIT

Johannes “Jojo” Betzler is a small, spirited Nazi enthusiast, and Adolf Hitler’s biggest fan. Or, at least, a Hitler he imagines in his creative little head, as Jojo does not know all that much about the real Adolf. The boy experiences some failures, like the one where he almost blew himself up while training with other children to become a warrior of the Third Reich, but he is sure that the Nazi way is the best way. Thus, when Jojo discovers that his pure Aryan house has been stained by his mother hiding a Jewish girl, he goes on a journey to kill the monster. What he does not know is that Jewish people can cast spells. The result is, Jojo befriends the girl - and even falls for her!

Director: Taika Waititi
Cinematographer: Mihai Malaimare Jr.
Produced by: Czech Anglo Productions, Defender Films, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Piki Films
Polish distributor: Imperial CinePix Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: Germany, USA, 2019

KING, THE

It is quite a daunting task to be an English monarch, especially when you don’t have the predisposition for it, and you look like a pale young boy on the verge of maturity. However, King Henry V went down in history, and inspired famous Shakespeare plays upon which this film is partly based. The new king has to learn how to cope with the impossible pressure inherited with the crown, but also find alliances among the numerous court intrigues, and react appropriately to the overblown Hundred Years’ War with France. While the king tries to leave his mark in history, the landmark Battle of Agincourt steadily approaches.

Director: David Michôd
Cinematographer: Adam Arkapaw
Produced by: Blue-Tongue Films, Pioneer Stilking Films, Plan B Entertainment, Porchlight Films, Yoki
Country and year: UK, Hungary, Australia, 2019

MARRIAGE STORY

What we really know about ourselves is equal to how much self-awareness we have, and if we can imagine ourselves in situations we will probably never experience first-hand, which means that we do not really know that much at all. Nicole and Charlie also thought that they were in control of themselves and their happy marriage, but then came the breakdown, and the divorce. However, instead of waving each other goodbye for the sake of the well-being of their only child, the former lovers begin to use every opportunity to prove that they are better, brighter, more suited for the role of parent than the other, and thus, they became both the heroes and the villains of this story.

Polish title: Historia małżeńska
Director: Noah Baumbach
Cinematographer: Robbie Ryan
Produced by: Heyday Films, Netflix
Country and year: USA, 2019

PAIN AND GLORY

Salvador Mallo is a renowned film director, with many achievements to be jealous of. He exchanged his childhood misery for a beautiful world, in which he is his own master. He tasted love and human affection, as well as the pain necessary for his poignant films to become celebrated masterpieces, and he is aware of the fact that what he has made has inspired millions of viewers to look differently at the surrounding world. But now, years after his fiftieth birthday, Salvador feels empty in his heart, and tired of all those masks he has to wear to cover the pervasive numbness. The man reminisces important moments from his life, and wonders what will happen next.

Original title: Dolor y gloria
Polish title: Ból i blask
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Cinematographer: José Luis Alcaine
Produced by: El Deseo S.A., El Primer Deseo
Polish distributor: GUTEK Film Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: Spain, 2019

PARASITE

Parasite is a masterfully created suspenseful story about four people with no future, who come up with the idea of a perfect scam. Working together, an unemployed driver, a homeless housewife, a broke student, and a girl going nowhere devise a flawless plan to really become somebody, and box the rich out as quickly as possible. In a world where only efficiency and success matter, they will outwit the system and stand up for themselves, even if they have to cross the thin line between what is still allowed, and what is strictly forbidden. Bong Joon-ho points out that almost everyone dreams about a better life, promotion, and a chance to triumph, but only some are able to reach out for it, all thanks to their wild imagination – and a lack of scruples.

Director: Joon-Ho Bong
Cinematographer: Kyung-Pyo Hong
Produced by: Barunson E&A, CJ Entertainment, TMS Comics, TMS Entertainment
Polish distributor: GUTEK Film Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: South Korea, 2019

RED SEA DIVING RESORT, THE

Early 1980s. Ari Levinson is an extremely talented and suave Mossad agent, who does not like to be controlled in any way by his commanding officers. One day, he devises a plan about how to smuggle hundreds of Ethiopian Jews to Israel, and convinces the government to buy an abandoned resort in Sudan – he and his team will modify it into a working tourist attraction that will become the perfect cover for the operation. Everything goes smoothly in the beginning, but then people start to show up demanding rooms and quality service. Ari and his agents do not have a choice – they become hotel managers by day and smugglers by night.

Polish title: Operacja bracia
Director: Gideon Raff
Cinematographer: Roberto Schaefer
Produced by: Bron Studios, EMJAG Productions,Fox Searchlight Pictures, Shaken Not Stirred
Country and year: Canada, 2019

REPORT, THE

US Senator Dianne Feinstein actively supports the process of revealing all truths about what happened in America after the traumatic events of 9/11. She orders one of her trusted staff, Daniel Jones, to prepare a report about the methods used by the CIA to interrogate the prisoners accused of terrorist activities. The man begins arduous research that takes him years to complete, especially since he has to peel back dozens of layers of illusion prepared by those who did not ever want the truth to see the light of day. In the beginning, Jones finds only slight inaccuracies, but as his investigation deepens, he becomes terrified of what he has to report.

Director: Scott Z. Burns
Cinematographer: Eigil Bryld
Produced by: Topic Studios, Margin of Error, Unbranded Pictures, Vice Media
Country and year: USA, 2019

RONA, AZIM'S MOTHER

Brothers Azim and Faroogh left their home country of Afghanistan and found a safe haven in Iran. However, the conditions they live in are difficult, so they are saving money to buy their way to the European asylum in Germany. Only Azim is supposed to stay in Iran, but just before the departure, he realises in despair that Faroogh does not want to take their old mother with him, only his wife and children. He takes the woman who gave him life to his place, and does his best to make her life just a bit easier. Unfortunately, one day it turns out that his mother is sick and requires an organ transplant – and this is something that a foreigner is not able to organise in this world.

Original title: Rona, Madar-e Azim
Director: Jamshid Mahmoudi
Cinematographer: Koohyar Kalari
Produced by: Noori Pictures
Country and year: Iran, Afghanistan, 2018

WAVES

Tyler is a successful young athlete, supported by his stern but loving father on a path to a great scholarship and a sports career. Though the boy has some serious health issues, he has his whole life planned out. But, in spite of his passion for wrestling and the love for his girlfriend, Tyler makes one bad decision after another, and everything he does or doesn’t do culminates in a wave of disastrous proportions that threatens to destroy everything he holds dear. The protagonist’s actions have the most negative impact on his family, especially his younger sister, who starts to experience problems with deciding who she wants to be.

Director: Trey Edward Shults
Cinematographer: Drew Daniels
Produced by: A24 Films
Polish distributor: United International Pictures Sp. z o.o. (UIP Polska)
Country and year: USA, 2019

WHO YOU THINK I AM

Claire is a 50-year-old brilliant academic, who was divorced by her husband after he had fallen in love with a much younger girl. While suffering an identity crisis, the woman decides she also wants to taste the forbidden fruit of romancing someone half her age. She tries to seduce an attractive boy named Ludo, but it turns out he is not that interested. Then, via social media, Claire becomes Clara, a 25-year-old with a lot to offer. While hunting for Ludo’s attention, the woman becomes a cyber predator, and starts a virtual relationship with the boy’s roommate, Alex. What begins as a trick changes into something almost real, though Claire has problems with revealing who she really is.

Original title: Celle que vous croyez
Polish title: Taka, jaką mnie chcesz
Director: Safy Nebbou 
Cinematographer: Gilles Porte
Produced by: Diaphana Films
Polish distributor: ITI Neovision Sp. z o.o.
Country and year: France, 2019