Jonathan Demme’s latest film ‘Rachel Getting Married’ represents the festival’s last hope to avoid being branded a total washout. From the moment the films in competition were announced, the organisers have come in for heavy criticism over the choice of films, with the lack of English-language entries blamed for the lack of glamour.
Hotel bookings are down a fifth on last year’s festival, as are ticket sales, are there are just not enough big-name draws. The situation seems so dire that Venice may be replaced by Toronto as the film festival that kicks off the Oscar race.
Even worse is the schedule. By leaving some of the biggest films, ‘Rachel Getting Married’ and Darren Aronofsky’s ‘The Wrestler’ right to the end of the programme, many of the journalists have left to head to Toronto, which begins tomorrow. It’s a sorry state of affairs, and a truly disappointing year for the festival.
Stil, we’d recommend you check out ‘Rachel Getting Married’, if only for Tunde Adebimpe’s a-cappelo cover of Neil Young’s ‘Unknown Legend’. Come on, you need to grasp at whatever positive you can find…
