American Films at the Venice Film Festival 2013

(Venice, Italy) The Academy Award-winning director, William Friedkin, best known for directing The French Connection and The Exorcist, will be honored with Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 70th Venice International Film Festival. Friedkin said that The Sorcerer (1977) was his favorite film, and believes that it didn't do as well as it should have at the box office because it was competing against Star Wars. Well, soon we will get the chance to see it here at the Venice Film Festival because it's getting another breath of life 36 years later.

Many people have asked about the screening schedule for the public for the 70th Venice International Film Festival. It is now up on the La Biennale website.

Every so often my German-American brain tries to organize things in a different way than the byzantine method used here in Venice. So, in addition to the previous post in which I listed all the American films competing in the festival, I am now going to list the additional American films showing at the festival, by category. It was quite a project, and I hope I got them all. If any film catches your eye, go to the La Biennale website and flip through the screening schedule until you find the day it is playing. If the film was a joint US production together with another country, I listed it, as did with the previous post about the films in competition that you can read here:

 OUTERSPACE EXPLOSION! What's Playing on the Lido - 70th Venice Film Festival 2013

AMERICAN FILMS - OUT OF COMPETITION

Important works by directors already established in previous editions of the Festival

ALFONSO CUARÓN - GRAVITY
Usa, 91'
George Clooney, Sandra Bullock

SALVO CUCCIA - CUCCIA - SUMMER 82 WHEN ZAPPA CAME TO SICILY [SPECIAL SCREENINGS]
Italy, Usa, 80'

Gail Zappa, Moon Zappa, Diva Zappa, Dweezil Zappa, Mathilda Doucette, Megan Zappa, Massimo Bassoli, Steve Vai, Tanino Liberatore, Thomas Nordegg

The docu is dedicated to Frank Zappa and his concert at the Stadio della Favorita in Palermo in July of 82, which was interrupted after only twenty minutes due to clashes between the police and the public.

ALEX GIBNEY - THE ARMSTRONG LIE [SPECIAL SCREENINGS]
Usa, 122'
Lance Armstrong

From the NY Times: "Sony Pictures Classics said in a news release that Mr. Gibney spent four years following Mr. Armstrong, starting in 2009,  as he returned from retirement and unsuccessfully pursued another Tour de France title. “Unexpectedly,” the release said, “Gibney was also there in 2012 when Armstrong admitted to doping, following a federal criminal investigation, public accusations of doping by his ex-teammates and an investigation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.” The film project that “began as the chronicle of a comeback became an examination into the anatomy of a lie.”"

PAUL RUDISH, AARON SPRINGER, CLAY MORROW - DISNEY MICKEY MOUSE 'O SOLE MINNIE
Usa, 4'

We can only imagine what this short short is about:)

PAUL SCHRADER - THE CANYONS
Usa, 99'
Lindsay Lohan, James Deen, Nolan Gerard Funk, Gus Van Sant 

Now we will see what all the fuss is about. From The Guardian: Bret Easton Ellis has told The Hollywood Reporter he was left "confused" by the level of hatred unleashed by critics of The Canyons, the Lindsay Lohan-starring "modern day film noir" he wrote for director Paul Schrader. Schrader's film, which also features porn star James Deen in a leading role, was turned down by both Sundance and SXSW film festivals and widely rubbished by reviewers upon its eventual low-key release in one New York cinema and via on-demand.

FREDERICK WISEMAN - AT BERKELEY [SPECIAL SCREENINGS]
Usa, 244'

The acclaimed documentary filmmaker is still going strong at age 83. This time his eye is on the Berkeley Campus.

AMERICAN FILMS - HORIZONS (ORIZZONTI)

 The new trends in world cinema

GIA COPPOLA - PALO ALTO
USA, 98'
Emma Roberts, Jack Kilmer, James Franco, Val Kilmer, Keegan Allen, Nat Wolff, Colleen Camp 

Granddaughter of Francis Ford and niece of Sofia, Gia Coppola gives it a shot.

JONAS CUARÓN - ANINGAAQ
USA, 7'
Orto Ignatiussen, Lajla Lange, Maligiaq Fredeik, Lange Siegstad, Sandra Bullock (voice) 

ANDREA PALLAORO - MEDEAS
USA, Italy, 98'
Catalina Sandino Moreno, Brían F. O'Byrne  

TI WEST - THE SACRAMENT
USA, 95'
Joe Swanberg, AJ Bowen, Kentucker Audley, Amy Seimetz, Gene Jones 

From The Horror Society: From acclaimed writer/director Ti West (The House of the Devil, The Innkeepers) and horror master Eli Roth, The Sacrament follows two Vice media correspondents as they set out to document their friend’s search to find his missing sister. They travel outside of the United States to an undisclosed location where they are welcomed into the world of “Eden Parish,” a self-sustained rural utopia with nearly 200 members. At the center of this small, religious, socialist community is a mysterious leader known only as “Father.” As their friend reunites with his sister, it becomes apparent to the newcomers that this paradise may not be as it seems.

 AMERICAN FILMS - VENICE CLASSICS

 A selection of restored classic films and documentaries on cinema

CHANTAL AKERMAN - HÔTEL MONTEREY (1972)
Belgium, Usa, 65' 

From Criterion: "Under Chantal Akerman’s watchful eye, a cheap Manhattan hotel glows with mystery and unexpected beauty, its corridors, elevators, rooms, windows, and occasional occupants framed like Edward Hopper tableaux."

RAY ASHLEY, MORRIS ENGEL, RUTH ORKIN - LITTLE FUGITIVE (1953)
Usa, 75'
Richard Brewster, Winifred Cushing, Jay Williams 

Little Fugitive won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1953.

From Wikipedia: "Little Fugitive is a 1953 film written and directed by Raymond Abrashkin (as "Ray Ashley"), Morris Engel and Ruth Orkin, that tells the story of a child alone in Coney Island. It stars Richie Andrusco in the title role, and Richard Brewster as his brother Lennie. Little Fugitive influenced the French New Wave and is considered by modern day critics to be a landmark film because of its naturalistic style and groundbreaking use of nonprofessional actors in lead roles. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Motion Picture Story and screened at Venice film festival where it was awarded with the silver lion. In 1997, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"."

JOHN FORD - MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946)
Usa, 97'
Henry Fonda, Linda Darnell, Victor Mature

From Wikipedia: "My Darling Clementine is a 1946 Western movie directed by John Ford and starring Henry Fonda as Wyatt Earp during the Gunfight at the OK Corral. The ensemble cast also features Linda Darnell, Victor Mature, Walter Brennan, Tim Holt and Ward Bond."

WILLIAM FRIEDKIN - SORCERER (1977)
Usa, 121'
Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Rabal

From Wikipedia: "The director William Friedkin considers Sorcerer his favourite, most personal and the most difficult film he has ever made. He thought at the time that it would become his legacy. After a lengthy lawsuit filed against Paramount and Universal Studios, Friedkin is supervising a digital restoration of Sorcerer, with the new print set to be premiered at the 70th Venice International Film Festival on August 29, 2013 (Friedkin's birthday, coincidentally). Home video releases are also in the works."

SAMANTHA FULLER - A FULLER LIFE [DOCUMENTARIES]
Usa, 80'

^{I was perplexed as to why this 2013 documentary that Samantha Fuller made to honor her filmmaker father, Sam Fuller, is listed under "classics;" perhaps it's because the clips are from Sam Fuller's flicks?} 

From IMDb: Friends and admirers of iconoclastic film director Sam Fuller read from his memoirs in this unconventional documentary directed by Fuller's only child, Samantha.

IRVING PICHEL, ERNEST B. SCHOEDSACK - THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (1932)
Usa, 59'
Joel McCrea, Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong

Ah, they don't make 'em like they used to. From IMDb: "An insane hunter arranges for a ship to be wrecked on an island where he can indulge in some sort of hunting and killing of the passengers."

BRUCE WEBER - LET'S GET LOST (1988)
Usa, 120'
Chet Baker, Carol Baker, Vera Baker 

From Wikipedia: "A group of Baker fans, ranging from ex-associates to ex-wives and children, talk about the man. Weber’s film traces the man’s career from the 1950s, playing with jazz greats like Charlie Parker, Gerry Mulligan, and Russ Freeman, to the 1980s, when his heroin addiction and domestic indifference kept him in Europe. By juxtaposing these two decades, Weber presents a sharp contrast between the younger, handsome Baker — the statuesque idol who resembled a mix of James Dean and Jack Kerouac — to what he became, “a seamy looking drugstore cowboy-cum-derelict,” as J. Hoberman put it in his Village Voice review."

BRUCE WEBER - NICE GIRLS DON'T STAY FOR BREAKFAST (WORK IN PROGRESS) [DOCUMENTARIES]
Usa, 30'

DON WEIS - THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA (1954)
Usa, 94'
John Derek, Elaine Stewart, Amanda Blake

Trivia from Wikipedia: "Playboy Playmates and pin-up models were cast in the female roles. Amanda Blake, 1955-1974 "Miss Kitty Russell" on Gunsmoke. Paul Picerni, 1959-1963 "Federal Agent Lee Hobson" on The Untouchables."

The 70th Venice International Film Festival, organized by La Biennale di Venezia,and  directed by Alberto Barbera, will run on Venice Lido from 28th August to 7th September 2013.

Ciao from Venezia,
Cat
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog