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   <channel>
      <title>Ioncinema News Feed</title>
      <link>http://www.ioncinema.com</link>
      <description>All News</description>
      <language>en-us</language>
      <pubDate>Thu, 04 Oct 2007 23:59:45 GMT</pubDate>
      <lastBuildDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:09:46 -0500</lastBuildDate>
      <managingEditor>eric@ioncinema.com (Eric Lavallee)</managingEditor>
      <webMaster>shyamramani@gmail.com (Shyam Ramani)</webMaster>
      <atom:link href="http://www.ioncinema.com/rss/showme/all" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
      <copyright>All other copyright &#64; 2000 &#45; 2012 Eric Lavallee. All Rights Reserved</copyright>
      <category>Entertainment</category>
      <category>World</category>
      <category>Cinema</category>
      <category>Film</category>
<item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Love Free or Die]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/7050/review-love-free-or-die</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Love Free or Die       Click here to read the review!
"There&rsquo;s nothing innately wrong with Alston&rsquo;s documentary, other than that it seems to lack a cohesive focus. While the main thrust seems to be concerned with the subject of Gene Robinson, the documentary slips into a mild treatise on homosexuality and how divisive it is in the religious realm. While everyone should be able to practice the faith of their choosing and everyone should be respected and treated equally, it&rsquo;s a bit hard to feel too emotionally distraught over the treatment of Gene Robinson and the struggle for acceptance in the religious realm."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/7050/review-love-free-or-die</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Chasing Ice]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/7039/review-chasing-ice</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Chasing Ice       Click here to read the review!
"Featuring never before captured time lapse photography as the film's center piece, this documentary should make for a revelatory experience for climate change naysayers. The evidence is quite conclusive. Complimenting this horrifying melt footage is an assemblage of Balog's incredible still snapshots. Among the arctic alien landscapes, Balog finds unyielding beauty in the massive icebergs, and he aspires to share their allure with the world with a unique eye."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/7039/review-chasing-ice</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Detropia]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6082/review-detropia</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Detropia       Click here to read the review!
"With a mindful eye and an evenhanded approach, stark photography and unmitigated confessions, Detropia gives an austere depiction of a floundering city who's glory days are over, but the acceptance of failure remains unthinkable while potential still remains."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6082/review-detropia</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Invisible War]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6078/review-the-invisible-war</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Invisible War       Click here to read the review!
"Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering have crafted a heartbreaking, highly important film that exposes this rampant sexual abuse that is widely ignored by the military system with hopes of changing the unjust military judicial structure that is currently in place."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6078/review-the-invisible-war</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Man on a Mission: Richard Garriott's Road to the Stars]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6741/review-man-on-a-mission-richard-garriotts-road-to-the-stars</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Man on a Mission: Richard Garriott's Road to the Stars       Click here to read the review!
"We behold all of the unpleasant physical trainings and the grand achievement of a successful space voyage, and subliminally we are told that if you dream big, anything can happen. Unfortunately, most of us will never be millionaires with the privilege to spend without repercussions, and watching Garriot do so with such egregious waste is often downright annoying."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2012 10:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6741/review-man-on-a-mission-richard-garriotts-road-to-the-stars</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6747/review-cormans-world-exploits-of-a-hollywood-rebel</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel       Click here to read the review!
"With her feature debut, Corman&rsquo;s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel, director Alex Stapleton brings us a fascinating and superbly endearing portrait of an overlooked artist and a man whose significance to modern day Hollywood is unmistakable."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 15 Dec 2011 12:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6747/review-cormans-world-exploits-of-a-hollywood-rebel</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Knuckle]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6746/review-knuckle</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Knuckle       Click here to read the review!
"Having the distinction of being filmed for a period of over 12 years, Palmer&rsquo;s documentary would have you think that his roving camera was in fact voraciously following several sparring Traveller clans in Ireland. But the fact of the matter is the act of filmmaking seems to be more of an afterthought, as what Palmer&rsquo;s camera (much like his audience) really seeks is the rabid thrill of hand to hand bare-knuckled fighting."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 09 Dec 2011 11:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6746/review-knuckle</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6751/review-force-of-nature-the-david-suzuki-movie</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie       Click here to read the review!
"His lecture and look back is chronicled in Sturla Gunnarsson's Force Of Nature &ndash; The David Suzuki Movie, a film that beholds a man who always speaks with wisdom, authenticity, and simplicity as if every line were part of a story recounted to his youngest grandchild."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 02 Dec 2011 11:55:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6751/review-force-of-nature-the-david-suzuki-movie</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Greater Good]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6919/review-the-greater-good</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Greater Good       Click here to read the review!
"Kendall Nelson and Chris Pilaro track down the leaders from both sides of the fence, carefully propped them against a mountain of hard numerical evidence proving that immunization drugs aren't going through enough rigorous testing to prove that they are safe for public implementation, and pair them with beautifully tasteful animations that help convey their message while complimenting the prominent talking heads within this informative doc."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 25 Nov 2011 11:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6919/review-the-greater-good</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Dragonslayer]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6428/review-dragonslayer</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Dragonslayer       Click here to read the review!
Dragonslayer artfully captures Sandoval's tale of skating abandoned pools, a romantic interlude, and eventual submission to capitalistic adulthood with penetrating intimacy, and eloquent authenticity.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6428/review-dragonslayer</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Charlotte Rampling: The Look]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6887/review-charlotte-rampling-the-look</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Charlotte Rampling: The Look       Click here to read the review!
"There&rsquo;s a lot of empty pontificating in this movie, so it&rsquo;s unsurprising that writer Paul Auster offers the doc&rsquo;s most intriguing conversation starter: &ldquo;Has anyone over 80 ever written a great novel?&rdquo; Rampling doesn&rsquo;t have a clue; the question is dropped as soon as it&rsquo;s offered. Like everything with this movie, it&rsquo;s a great potential unexplored."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6887/review-charlotte-rampling-the-look</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Klitschko]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6464/review-klitschko</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Klitschko       Click here to read the review!
"Like Tyson, this boxing doc chronicles the life of its stars assuming most of its viewers will have no background on its subjects. If you know anything about the Klitschkos before watching this, there is little you're likely to learn about them from it, but that doesn't make it any less entertaining. Dehnhardt understands drama, and utilizes it throughout to create an absorbing sports doc that would fit nicely into the ESPN 30-for-30 series."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 21 Oct 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6464/review-klitschko</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Revenge of the Electric Car]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6852/review-revenge-of-the-electric-car</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Revenge of the Electric Car       Click here to read the review!
"All four subjects are charismatic, highly confident businessmen; perfect candidates for this style of doc, but their tales hold little weight. It was inevitable that, as the world becomes more concerned with its finite natural resources, electric vehicles would become a serious alternative to fossil fuels. What Revenge discloses is well packaged old news with magnetic spokesmen pitching us their newest products while admitting their simultaneous blunders."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 21 Oct 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6852/review-revenge-of-the-electric-car</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Bombay Beach]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6106/review-bombay-beach</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Bombay Beach       Click here to read the review!
Bombay Beach, is a wonderful hybrid documentary that follows the lives of three of the town's troubled citizens while intermixing choreographed dance numbers into the fold to interject desperately needed hope and humor.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 13 Oct 2011 12:40:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6106/review-bombay-beach</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Man Nobody Knew: In Search of My Father CIA Spymaster William Colby]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6731/review-the-man-nobody-knew-in-search-of-my-father-cia-spymaster-william-colby</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Man Nobody Knew: In Search of My Father CIA Spymaster William Colby       Click here to read the review!
"Documentary filmmaker Carl Colby exploits family skeletons with his latest effort, The Man Nobody Knew: In Search Of My Father, CIA Spymaster William Colby, which details the life of his father, who was the director of the CIA during the Nixon administration. While not terribly surprising in its revelations, the film does manage to illicit empathy as an intimate portrait of a cold, distant father, struggling to reconcile not only his duplicitous life between work and family but also between work and politics."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 13 Oct 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6731/review-the-man-nobody-knew-in-search-of-my-father-cia-spymaster-william-colby</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: To Be Heard]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6836/review-to-be-heard</link>
         <description><![CDATA[To Be Heard       Click here to read the review!
"Hard times yield great beauty in the hands of immense creative beings. To Be Heard manages to capture their overcoming of affliction through human expression, making for quite a stirring documentary that exposes and inspires."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6836/review-to-be-heard</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Hell and Back Again]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6455/review-hell-and-back-again</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Hell and Back Again       Click here to read the review!
First time director Danfung Dennis spent a number of months embedded with a 35 man US marine company in Afghanistan, where he found Sgt. Nathan Harris trying desparately to successfully complete a variety of dangerous missions behind enemy lines while keeping his squad safely intact.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:55:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6455/review-hell-and-back-again</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Pina]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6734/review-pina</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Pina       Click here to read the review!
"Indeed, musicals incorporate a narrative skeleton to window-dress their songs &amp; dance; here, there is no such thing. It's a complete distillation of the genre - packing in the euphoria, abandoning the obligatory connective tissue. In that sense, Pina is cinema bliss. If only it didn't feel like Bausch's work could been replaced by Master Choreographer X, this might have been a winner."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 28 Sep 2011 11:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6734/review-pina</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Twenty Cigarettes]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6808/review-twenty-cigarettes</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Twenty Cigarettes       Click here to read the review!
"Ninety-nine minutes, twenty shots, twenty cigarettes, twenty faces (ten men, ten women) - sounds exciting, doesn't it? To anyone who hasn't already been converted by one of James Benning's deceptively simple structural films, the prospect of sitting through all of Twenty Cigarettes is perhaps more toxic than a cigarette itself."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 23 Sep 2011 12:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6808/review-twenty-cigarettes</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Limelight]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6466/review-limelight</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Limelight       Click here to read the review!
"Even those &lsquo;90s New Yorkers who kept their distance from the club scene might remember journalist Frank Owen&rsquo;s seemingly weekly expos&eacute;s in the Village Voice on Gatien and the nightlife world at large. Owen was a great read then, and he&rsquo;s by far the most engaging talking head in Limelight, handy with an outrageous anecdote, eager to burst the bubble of a ludicrous lie, bereft of an agenda. If only Corben&rsquo;s movie had emulated Owen&rsquo;s admirable mixture of candor and circumspection."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 23 Sep 2011 11:40:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6466/review-limelight</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Patron Saints]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6709/review-the-patron-saints</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Patron Saints       Click here to read the review!
"Subject matter combined with a fly-on-the-wall vantage point makes this one of the few films where voyeurism feels like being a spirit drifting between rooms, observing patients awaiting death. It&rsquo;s like Emily Dickinson&rsquo;s version of Enter the Void (2009), and perhaps you&rsquo;ll think of her words about death and how he kindly stops for us, as we gaze out the back of an ambulance carrying away a corpse, while the desolate trees fly by in the sky and we fade to black."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 14 Sep 2011 12:10:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6709/review-the-patron-saints</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Granito: How to Nail a Dictator]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6714/review-granito-how-to-nail-a-dictator</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Granito: How to Nail a Dictator       Click here to read the review!
"For reasons of both film reflection and historic preservation, Granito: How to Nail a Dictator is a revelatory film and one that will certainly leave a weighty impression on its viewers."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 14 Sep 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6714/review-granito-how-to-nail-a-dictator</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Last Call at the Oasis]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6762/review-last-call-at-the-oasis</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Last Call at the Oasis       Click here to read the review!
"Jessica Yu's new doc pulls back the veil on a little talked about problem that is literally apocalyptic is scope."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 20:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6762/review-last-call-at-the-oasis</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6715/review-the-autobiography-of-nicolae-ceausescu</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu       Click here to read the review!
"...a unique and accomplished work of art that is a fantastic conversation piece on the nature of art, film, documentary, narrative and subjectivity."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 09 Sep 2011 12:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6715/review-the-autobiography-of-nicolae-ceausescu</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Where Soldiers Come From]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6517/review-where-soldiers-come-from</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Where Soldiers Come From       Click here to read the review!
"Courtney's film doesn't have the life threatening camera work and visual flair of Hell and Back Again, nor does it have an abundance of drama either, but the emotions still run high through the eyes of the young soldiers and their apprehensive families."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 09 Sep 2011 11:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6517/review-where-soldiers-come-from</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Black Power Mixtape 1967–1975]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/3023/review-the-black-power-mixtape-19671975</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Black Power Mixtape 1967&ndash;1975       Click here to read the review!
The Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975 celebrates black Americans, the push for social change, deep intellectual thought, and questioning the structural racism and classism that is institutionalized to hold many people down in society.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 09 Sep 2011 09:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/3023/review-the-black-power-mixtape-19671975</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Superheroes]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6519/review-superheroes</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Superheroes       Click here to read the review!
Superheroes presents a troubled minority, putting themselves at risk for the sake of a better world. The result is a sometimes humorous, but often morose look into why these benevolent, and disheartened souls don the superhero image.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 08 Aug 2011 11:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6519/review-superheroes</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Koran by Heart]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6510/review-koran-by-heart</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Koran by Heart       Click here to read the review!
Koran By Heart looks on at these young pupils with a fascinated eye, while subtly examining the education and gender beliefs of the fundamentalist Muslim world.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6510/review-koran-by-heart</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Page One: Inside the New York Times]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6508/review-page-one-inside-the-new-york-times</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Page One: Inside the New York Times       Click here to read the review!
"All these angles and stories are fascinating for the viewer but &ldquo;Page One&rdquo; has the distracted quality of a news junkie's Twitter feed. Perhaps if it were given the Ken Burn&rsquo;s treatment, &ldquo;Page One&rdquo; would be an extraordinary film. In the meantime, Rossi never gets around to exploring his opening question: What would the world be without The New York Times?"]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 29 Jul 2011 11:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6508/review-page-one-inside-the-new-york-times</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Life in a Day]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6112/review-life-in-a-day</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Life in a Day       Click here to read the review!
"At times, what could be powerful and poignant comes across as gimmicky and manipulative. In the &lsquo;what do you fear?&rsquo; section especially the film begins to preach, to distort the meaning of images in their juxtaposition with others. An anthemic score changes the weight of a scene and gives it undue gravitas, overstating its case. However, this portion of the film is a rare misstep and the editing is consistently motivated and often moving."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6112/review-life-in-a-day</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Mann V. Ford]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6480/review-mann-v-ford</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Mann V. Ford       Click here to read the review!
"Maro Chermayeff and Micah Fink's Mann Vs. Ford follows the development of the case over a five year period in traditional doc fashion, creating a film that, like many others, will leave you feeling disgusted with the US legal system, and the corporations that seem to control every country where capitalism is the economic structure."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Sun, 17 Jul 2011 22:15:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6480/review-mann-v-ford</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Arirang]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1839/review-arirang</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Arirang       Click here to read the review!
"Kim Ki-duk, one of South Korea's premiere - and most prolific - arthouse filmmakers for the last two decades, has, with his new film Arirang, assembled a diary that helps to explain why we haven't seen any new projects from him since 2008's Dream. Turning the camera on himself for 100 insufferable minutes, this is the kind of narcissistic woe-is-me claptrap that gives the Video Diary genre an unnecessarily bad name..."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1839/review-arirang</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Love Crimes of Kabul]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6463/review-love-crimes-of-kabul</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Love Crimes of Kabul       Click here to read the review!
"Though interviews imbue nearly every situation, Eshaghian's tact is much more conversational than most, playing off of the the prisoners as they debate their situations and spill their hearts, unveiling a sexist system at war with physical affection and basic human rights."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6463/review-love-crimes-of-kabul</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Project Nim]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/4034/review-project-nim</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Project Nim       Click here to read the review!
"The debate in the US whether wild animals should be allowed to be kept in captivity, both as pets or as test subjects, has raged on for years. Director James Marsh, the creator of Man On Wire, has crafted a film that presents a unique case against keeping animals in captivity with Nim, a chimpanzee that was taken from his mother shortly after birth, and became the subject of a test to see whether or not chimps had the capacity to learn and successfully use sign language."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/4034/review-project-nim</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Hot Coffee]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6449/review-hot-coffee</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Hot Coffee       Click here to read the review!
Hot Coffee is a thoroughly researched documentary, unveiling the unlawful legal practices that are often overlooked by the general public until an individual is harmed, and unable to face their offender in a fair and just court of law.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 27 Jun 2011 17:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6449/review-hot-coffee</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6103/review-if-a-tree-falls-a-story-of-the-earth-liberation-front</link>
         <description><![CDATA[If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front       Click here to read the review!
If A Tree Falls is a eye opening, and disheartening history lesson about the Earth Liberation Front, and the corporate forces it rallies against. While maintaining a keen objective eye, Curry and Cullman have put together an inquisitive documentary that brings into focus the ideals of one's morality, and a nation that seems to be ready to bury anyone who aims to question the safety of our environment.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2011 18:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6103/review-if-a-tree-falls-a-story-of-the-earth-liberation-front</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6080/review-resurrect-dead-the-mystery-of-the-toynbee-tiles</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles       Click here to read the review!
"The cryptic and bizarre message has mostly been disregarded by the average passerby, but to Justin Duerr and his two main research partners, Colin Smith and Steve Weinik, the search for the truth behind these tiles has been an obsession since first stumbling upon the tiles. Their quest to find the covert tiler, and the meaning of his crazed message, unfolds like a punk rock private eye tale that only becomes more extraordinary as each rare bit of evidence leads to the next."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:20:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6080/review-resurrect-dead-the-mystery-of-the-toynbee-tiles</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Sex Crimes Unit]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6088/review-sex-crimes-unit</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Sex Crimes Unit       Click here to read the review!
Unlike what you might expect after seeing an episode of Law &amp; Order: SVU, cases are calm, plodding affairs. Day after day of finding these cases on her desk must have dulled Friel's emotional reaction, as she seems fairly happy-go-lucky throughout most of the doc.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6088/review-sex-crimes-unit</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6437/review-a-matter-of-taste-serving-up-paul-liebrandt</link>
         <description><![CDATA[A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt       Click here to read the review!
"A Matter of Taste stays away from the creative process of crafting high end food that was highlighted in El Bulli, another decent culinary doc released this year, and instead features a young and skilled craftsman adrift in a market full of French technicians. Liebrandt's tale is far from over, but this portion of it is an interesting, though sometimes shallow feeling look at the top tier restaurant business."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 13 Jun 2011 12:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6437/review-a-matter-of-taste-serving-up-paul-liebrandt</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Family Instinct]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6429/review-family-instinct</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Family Instinct       Click here to read the review!
"Sometimes surprisingly funny, often claustrophobic, and almost always uncomfortable, Gauja's one year documentation of a confused young mother's life is as intimate and raw as they come."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6429/review-family-instinct</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: El Velador]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6111/review-el-velador</link>
         <description><![CDATA[El Velador       Click here to read the review!
"Natalia Almada's chilling look at what happens when criminal drug lords are deified even in death, while their victims are completely forgotten might be wordless, but speks volumes about a problem that is unlikely to go away."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 08 Jun 2011 10:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6111/review-el-velador</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Bobby Fischer Against the World]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1836/review-bobby-fischer-against-the-world</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Bobby Fischer Against the World       Click here to read the review!
"...like many brilliant minds, Fischer's talents came with significant mental instabilities that ultimately brought his downfall. In the new documentary by award-winning director Liz Garbus, Bobby Fischer Against The World, the Grandmaster's neurotic life is empathetically analyzed by the few people he let get close to him."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1836/review-bobby-fischer-against-the-world</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Fightville]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6089/review-fightville</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Fightville       Click here to read the review!
The weight-loss ritual (for reaching the range of the assigned weight class) is especially gruelling and extreme. Coupled with the likely harmful effects on the heart, this process adds another bit of ambivalence to the overall healthiness of the sport. The fights themselves are surprisingly anti-climatic. Perhaps opting for less explicit or rowdy fights for the sake of taming detractors, Epperlein &amp; Tucker show matches that are usually over just as they begin, ending with few punches or flashy moves (save for one feel-good connection).]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 06 May 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6089/review-fightville</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Bengali Detective]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6087/review-the-bengali-detective</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Bengali Detective       Click here to read the review!
The effect does fine if the film's function is as a character study (not to be mistaken, it is quite a character study), but it does detract from the other notable streams, to the point where the film's raison d'&ecirc;tre becomes forgettable. As an in-depth look at Bengali detectives' day-to-day details, or the national dependence on Bollywood culture, the film sits a bit flat-footed; however, the emotional and free-spirited charms remain very prominent, and aren't easily shaken.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 05 May 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6087/review-the-bengali-detective</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6338/review-pom-wonderful-presents-the-greatest-movie-ever-sold</link>
         <description><![CDATA[POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold       Click here to read the review!
In the end, though, the only brand that Spurlock's film finally condemns is his own. The man is a money-making machine without the backbone to risk putting his name, and face, on a genuinely radical or incendiary idea. For these reasons, POM Wonderful is counter-productive.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 04 May 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/6338/review-pom-wonderful-presents-the-greatest-movie-ever-sold</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/3032/review-beats-rhymes-life-the-travels-of-a-tribe-called-quest</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Beats, Rhymes &amp; Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest       Click here to read the review!
The accomplishment of Beats, Rhymes &amp; Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest is that it will win over audience members who are not fans of the band or even familiar with them. That&rsquo;s tougher than it sounds given the subject matter. An experienced actor and Hip-Hop connoisseur, the born and raised New Yorker Michael Rapaport steps behind the camera for the first time and expertly crafts this career spanning documentary.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 24 Mar 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/3032/review-beats-rhymes-life-the-travels-of-a-tribe-called-quest</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: The Redemption of General Butt Naked]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/4035/review-the-redemption-of-general-butt-naked</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Redemption of General Butt Naked, The       Click here to read the review!
This is a real time documentary about a man returning to the scene of his crimes and trying to start fresh&mdash;whether his victims want him or not. Much of the doc's success can be credited to the filmmakers for deciding what film they were making and sticking to it, for every minute of Butt Naked is purposeful, so we are left with the very rare well-paced documentary film.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/4035/review-the-redemption-of-general-butt-naked</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Shoah (1985)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1838/review-shoah-1985</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Shoah (1985)       Click here to read the review!
Lanzmann has a very nice touch with the subjects. He is somehow able to toe the line between pushing too hard on such sensitive subjects, and going to soft, and not getting the story. The result is very powerful and informative interviews. He also does right by the medium with his visuals.]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 06:00:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1838/review-shoah-1985</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Tyson ]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1834/review-tyson</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Tyson        Click here to read the review!
"...viewers hoping that the docu filmmaker peels away the layers of his docu subject will find a golden opportunity wasted."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1834/review-tyson</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Review: Waltz with Bashir]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1668/review-waltz-with-bashir</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Waltz with Bashir  Click here to read the review!
'...the ingenious mesh of docu form and animation makes this one of the revelation films from this year&rsquo;s Cannes film festival."]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 26 Dec 2008 03:05:00 -0500</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/1668/review-waltz-with-bashir</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Interview: Tarsem (The Fall)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2896/interview-tarsem-the-fall</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Walking through the labyrinthine corridors of the Waldof Towers I fear I&rsquo;ve lost my way until an eruption of laughter exploded behind one of the mirrored doors. I&rsquo;m in the right place. Tarsem, whose best known for his dynamic commercial career, emerges from his hotel room barefoot, grinning and he quickly became one of the most ingratiating filmmakers I&rsquo;ve had the pleasure of interviewing.
Set in the early years on silent cinema,The Fall tells the story of a young stunt man, Roy Walker, who injuries himself to the point of paralysis. Suicidal and depressed he begs little Alexandria, another patient at the hospital, to provide him with Morphine in exchange for a fantastic story.
Tarsem has only directed one feature film prior to The Fall, the 1999 thriller The Cell which starred Jennifer Lopez and Vince Vaughn. The film received a lukewarm reception and disillusioned the director with the Hollywood machine. Thus, Tarsem wanted his next film, The Fall&nbsp;to be&nbsp;a completely self-produced venture, and with a little help from his friends Spike Jonze and David Fincher the project began its journey. Four years, twenty four countries and several edits later, The Fall is ready for release, but will audiences be attracted to a no-star, visually driven, surrealist picture in this day and age? We&rsquo;re about to find out.
Tarsem Singh

&nbsp;
Benjamin Crossley-Marra: So this film first premiered at Toronto in 2006 correct?
Tarsem: Yes, we premiered an early cut at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival but that wasn&rsquo;t quite the final cut yet. They really wanted it to premiere at Toronto so I quickly put an edit&nbsp;together.
&nbsp;
BCM: So a lot has changed since 2006?
T: Very little was changed in terms of scenes, but in terms of structure, the two stories going in and out of each other, we really hadn&rsquo;t finalized that relationship yet. So now that it&rsquo;s about to come out I&rsquo;m finally doing press and I have to admit that&nbsp;it&rsquo;s a passion project that I was absolutely made for.

&nbsp;
BCM: Now I understand you drew your inspiration from the 1981 Bulgarian film Yo Ho Ho?
T: I did, but it looks nothing like my film though. Yo Ho Ho is a film I saw about twenty years ago, I liked one idea about it, so I bought the film rights. For the next seventeen years I travelled around the globe looking for locations that could be part of the fantasy world I envisioned for my film. I almost began production right before The Cell, but The Cell became the more obvious choice because it was more set-driven and The Fall relied heavily on locations. So logistically The Cell made more sense to do first, unfortunately, there was one intended location I stole from The Fall, the first scene of Jennifer Lopez on the sand dunes, but the rest I saved until we began production.
&nbsp;
BCM: I was going to try and see Yo Ho Ho before I came in today&hellip;
T: (laughs) I don&rsquo;t think you&rsquo;ll be able to find it]]></description>
         <pubDate>Fri, 09 May 2008 04:40:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2896/interview-tarsem-the-fall</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[IFFLA 08': Interview with Actor Rahul Bose (Before the Rains)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2605/iffla-08-interview-with-actor-rahul-bose-before-the-rains</link>
         <description><![CDATA[A couple of weeks ago, Yama Rahimi attended the Indian Film Festival in
Los Angeles (from April 22nd to the 27th). Now in its 6th edition, the
festival works at promoting a greater appreciation of Indian
cinema by showcasing films about India and the diverse perspectives of
the Indian Diaspora. Here is his coverage.
Bollywood A-list cinematographer and art house director Santosh Sivan is one of the few directors who has the double duty of lensing as well as directing his own films. He returns with another stunning film after The Terrorist left us craving for more of his talent.
This film based on a short Israeli film called "Yellow Asphalt: Red Roofs" is about the conflict an Indian man who's torn between his loyalty to the British and his native villagers after he witnesses his boss having an illicit affair with a married maid that threatens his existence in the volatile colonial India of 1930s. A great story with a sumptuous setting along with a superb cast including Linus Roache, Rahul Bose, Nandita Das and Jennifer Ehle makes this film a noteworthy period film. Sivan brings his magic behind and in front of the camera and makes him one of the best directors in India.Yama Rahimi: How did this project came to you?Rahul Bose: My manager in LA told me about this project that was making the rounds here and also the director Santosh Sivan contacted me that he wanted me for the film but the producers were not convinced since they wanted a younger actor. So they wanted me to audition and I refused to audition. Couple months later, I was shooting a film in Houston when I got a call from my manager asked me to put myself on tape and I did so reluctantly but then didn't think of it since they were looking at 20 or 30 other actors. Then I heard that I got the role, so it almost didn't happen.YR: Wow, that must be daunting that the director wants you but the producers are not convinced. What I thought was fascinating about this film was and that we haven't seen before that most films are done from the view point of the anti British but never of those who helped or collaborated with them. So the British must&nbsp; have lost their closest allies first.RB: It might have happened a lot where Indian with divided loyalties that hasn't been explored in cinema. A lot of Indians thought that British were good and our film is set&nbsp; ten years before the independence of India, so there must have been a lot of Indians like my character who came of age at that time.
 

YR: How challenging was the role for you?RB: The challenge wasn't being a villager or South Indian which I'm not but the silences because my character&nbsp; observes more&nbsp; and doesn't say much which I loved. I wanted to make sure that the whole dilemma of my character were clear in those silences which was in the script in between the lines.YR: How was working with Santosh Sivan who's one of the few directors who also do the cinematography?RB: Santosh is not a very verbal director. He's ]]></description>
         <pubDate>Tue, 06 May 2008 00:30:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2605/iffla-08-interview-with-actor-rahul-bose-before-the-rains</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[IFFLA 08': Interview Liz Mermin (Shot in Bombay)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2169/iffla-08-interview-liz-mermin-shot-in-bombay</link>
         <description><![CDATA[A couple of weeks ago, Yama Rahimi attended the Indian Film Festival in
Los Angeles (from April 22nd to the 27th). Now in its 6th edition, the
festival works at promoting a greater appreciation of Indian
cinema by showcasing films about India and the diverse perspectives of
the Indian Diaspora. Here is his coverage.
Outrageously funny and insightful, Liz Mermin's documentary explores the make-up of Bollywood filmmaking by sampling it on the set of "Shootout at Lokhandwala" with the real incident on which the film is based and the real life court drama of a Bollywood star undergoes.
Regardless of a viewer's knowledge of the Bollywood (it's tradition, style and form), the docu offers a behind the scenes of the film where the director outshines the big stars, where cops imitate Hollywood cop films like "Dirty Harry", and how one of the longest running court cases in India's history against Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt (who has been on trial since 1993 that included several arrests) manages t0 stay in the business with a total of 54 films under his belt.Yama Rahimi: Liz, how did this project come to you?Liz Mermin: Actually I was asked by a production company to make a film about Bollywood. So I said let's look at one film so we went to Bombay to explore and found two films that were interested. I found out at the end about "Shootout at Lokhandwala" which became very interesting because it wasn't about Bollywood&nbsp; alone but its ties to the underworld. How things were in the 90s and now. YR: You are doing eclectic work going from Afghanistan to India. How do you choose your projects?LM: The projects find me. I'm always reading the newspapers and read about Americans going to Kabul to open a beauty institute which I thought was insane.&nbsp; Who are these people and what are they doing. So that's "Beauty Academy of Kabul" came about. Same was with "Office Tigers" that came from article in the New Yorker. I was talking to a friend about it and she said knows the people. YR: What made you become a filmmaker?LM: If you asked as a kid or even after college, I never thought to become a filmmaker. I was more an academic and spend a year in Senegal after college where I was told it was the birth place of African cinema so I wrote about it. So I watched all those films and met the filmmakers. Documentaries were at the rise back then in the early 90's so when I got back I attended a program at NYU about documentary filmmaking.
]]></description>
         <pubDate>Tue, 06 May 2008 00:10:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2169/iffla-08-interview-liz-mermin-shot-in-bombay</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[IFFLA 08': Interview with festival director Christina Marouda]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2938/iffla-08-interview-with-festival-director-christina-marouda</link>
         <description><![CDATA[A couple of weeks ago, Yama Rahimi attended the Indian Film Festival in Los Angeles (from April 22nd to the 27th). Now in its 6th edition, the festival works at promoting a greater appreciation of Indian
cinema by showcasing films about India and the diverse perspectives of
the Indian Diaspora. Here is his coverage.Yama Rahimi: How did you get involved with the festival?Christina Marouda: I came up with the idea of starting an Indian Film Festival in Los Angeles six and half&nbsp; years ago since&nbsp; this is our 6th year because I worked with couple of International film festivals and my background was marketing and distributing films as well as programming films. I realized that there wasn't&nbsp; a platform for Indian films. You would see one or two films that were shown at some festivals every other year but even that in my opinion wasn't a representation of the country had to offer. Since I had an interest in India anyway, I thought there was a niche but I did my research and found there was an Indian community here. Also that year LAGAAN had been nominated for an Academy Award as a best foreign film and MONSOON WEDDING was coming out. Also there was this huge interest in Yoga and spiritualism in LA, so all these elements made me realize that there was a platform for this festival and only a question of time before India would be on everybody's radar. Now six years later all the studios are looking at India for local and co-productions. It would have been difficult for us now to establish ourselves when everybody is already interested because we wouldn't have been ready for the attention, so it took us to establish our vision and now we are ready for the attention.
 

YR: Wow, that's impressive that you also founded the festival&nbsp; given that you are from Greece. What was your first Bollywood film? Do you remember?CM:&nbsp; Hmm. I don't remember which film but it was in Greece where I grew up. I think it was either MOTHER INDIA or MUGHAL-E-Azam.YR: So was there a market for Bollywood films in Greece?CM: Not really but it was on TV. But in the 70's those film came into Greece and were shown theatrically and then on TV.YR: What kind of films are you looking for in the festival and what do you expect for the future?CM: Well our criteria is mostly films produced within the year of the festival but we are willing to go back two years depends on the films. The films have to be shot by Indians or be about India like "Shot in Bombay" directed by Liz Mermin who's an American but lives in the UK.YR: How's&nbsp; your&nbsp; festival perceived in Bollywood?CM: Well it's getting better since some films made it into Cannes (Devdas) Berlin (Om Shanti Om) and Locarno (Lagaan) since they saw that the festivals helped their films. So the studios in Mumbai are open but it depends on the timing of films being ready. For example our closing film "Mumbai Cutting" is a world premiere because all the filmmakers who were at our festival have become our ambas]]></description>
         <pubDate>Tue, 06 May 2008 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2938/iffla-08-interview-with-festival-director-christina-marouda</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Tribeca 08' Q&A: Liron Levo & DOP Ram Shweky (Strangers)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2870/tribeca-08-qa-liron-levo-dop-ram-shweky-strangers</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Strangers is a film about an impossible love between two tourists in Germany: one an Israeli man and the other a Palestinian woman. The film had its North American premiere last night and in typical New York fashion the two directors were stuck in traffic. This ended up being a blessing as the charming lead actor Liron Levo and Cinematographer Ram Shweky took the stage for the Q&amp;A. The announcement that Levo was in the crowd sent waves of delight through the audience, who had obviously fallen for him. The actor, famous in Israel but virtually unknown in the States, became an instant star as 30 women surrounded him to get a picture and autograph.

&ldquo;We did not have sex,&rdquo; was Levo&rsquo;s answer to an audience member&rsquo;s delicate question about his chemistry with actress Lubna Azabal. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what you were really asking, right?&rdquo; he said after the woman blushed profusely and put her head in her hands. The audience was roaring with laughter and it continued as another woman asked if he was single. There was a long pause.&nbsp; &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; he replied.
I had the pleasure of running the Q&amp;A, which was one of the funniest I&rsquo;ve ever experienced at any festival.&nbsp; And yes, this meant standing within 3 feet of the magnetizing Liron Levo. I asked if much of the film was improvised as the conversations were incredibly authentic. The actors primarily spoke in English, a second language for both of them. &ldquo;Everything was improvised except for two political conversations which were scripted.&rdquo;

The Cinematographer chimed in with anecdotes about being the one and only shooter, gaffer, focus puller, Best Boy, bag carrier&hellip;&nbsp; When asked how he shot the scenes at a club where the actors are encircled by the camera he replied, &ldquo;I put it on my shoulder and I walked this way and that way, and around...&rdquo; Huge laughter and applause came from the audience. They made the film in 16 days with virtually no budget. The film has played at Sundance and the Jerusalem Film festival and is sure to cause a big reaction when it opens in Israel this month. Less than a week ago, IFC Films picked up the picture for what will probably either be an autumn or year-end release.
&nbsp;]]></description>
         <pubDate>Thu, 01 May 2008 17:50:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2870/tribeca-08-qa-liron-levo-dop-ram-shweky-strangers</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Interview: Jeremy Podeswa (Fugitive Pieces)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2239/interview-jeremy-podeswa-fugitive-pieces</link>
         <description><![CDATA[When Jakob was a boy, the last thing his mother said to him as she hid him underneath a covered table was not to come out, no matter what.&nbsp; In the moments that followed, Jakob watched as his mother took a rifle to her head, his father then shot dead and his older sister was dragged out of their home by her hair.&nbsp; It&rsquo;s no wonder Jakob would grow up to become a man who lives his life as if he were still cowering under that same table.
The connection between past and present centers the vast story of Canadian director, Jeremy Podeswa&rsquo;s Fugitive Pieces.&nbsp;Based on the prize-winning novel of the same name by Anne Michaels, Fugitive Pieces follows Jakob from his childhood through the rest of his life, from his escape from Nazi-controlled Poland to his exile in Greece alongside his surrogate father, Athos, and finally to Canada, where he will live out the rest of his tormented years.&nbsp; The film&rsquo;s beauty can easily be found in the sweeping shots of the Greek Islands or the intrinsically linked performances of Jakob, young and old (young, Robbie Kay, old, Stephen Dillane) but its purest form of beauty comes from the manner in which it is told.&nbsp; Rather than allow the events to unfold chronologically, Fugitive Pieces tells Jakob&rsquo;s story in precisely that, pieces.&nbsp; They are fragmented but still connected through the spirit of a man who not only had to endure atrocities but move past them in order to live instead of just survive.
Podeswa has found himself in a sweet position. His third feature has just opened the Toronto International Film Festival and is now working its way through the circuit before it finds itself released in Canadian cinemas in the spring of 2008. This is not the first but rather the fourth time he has found himself showcasing his work at one of the world&rsquo;s most prestigious film festivals. After pursuing his studies in film at Toronto&rsquo;s Ryerson University and the American Film Institute in California, one of Podeswa&rsquo;s earliest short film works was given a spot at the fest.&nbsp; His first two features, Eclipse and The Five Senses, followed the same path and brought him opportunities to work on numerous television series, ranging from Six Feet Under and Nip/Tuck to Queer as Folk and Carnivale.&nbsp; While these vastly different shows have given him the chance to shoot around the world, it is his love for Michaels&rsquo; novel that has brought him home to Canada for his first feature in eight years.I caught the Genie award-winning director just hours before he would fly home to Toronto for a few days of rest &ndash; a concept he has become unfamiliar with as of late.&nbsp; He was here in Montreal to support the latest stop on the Fugitive Pieces promotional tour, screening as part of the Festival de Nouveau Cinema.&nbsp; It was early; he hadn&rsquo;t had a chance to have breakfast and I blew in there just on time, having just come from stuffing my face.&nbsp; Considering]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 28 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2239/interview-jeremy-podeswa-fugitive-pieces</guid>
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         <title><![CDATA[Interview: Céline Sciamma (Water Lilies)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2835/interview-cline-sciamma-water-lilies</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Like the beloved Charlie Brown comics, Water 
Lilies, a new film by Celine Sciamma, contains no adults.&nbsp; It is a pure teen angst experience, as if Lucy had grown into an awkward 15-year-old, struggling with her attraction to girls and a newfound obsession with synchronized swimming. The title, Water Lillies, refers to the girls, blooming and beautiful on the surface but a tangled web of roots beneath.Ms. Sciamma is an unusual director. The young French screenwriter had never directed, not even a short film.&nbsp; Yet, fresh out of film school, she met a group of able producers who fell in love with her first screenplay and encouraged her to direct it. Ms. Sciamma is among a group of female first time directors who have had incredible success this year. Water Lilies was nominated at the Cesar Awards (the French Oscars) for &ldquo;Best First Feature&rdquo;.&nbsp; All her fellow nominees were women. Critics around the world have been asking her if it&rsquo;s a coincidence. She hopes it&rsquo;s a sign of something larger, that the number of female directors is on the rise.Ms. Sciamma is a sweet looking 27-year-old whose intelligence is almost intimidating.&nbsp; One can see her confidence building, as she takes on her new role as an award winning professional. She&rsquo;s new to this game and knows that that is where her power lies. Audiences are craving an intelligent voice they haven&rsquo;t heard before.
C&eacute;line Sciamma

Laura Newman:&nbsp; How has the film been received internationally?&nbsp; When I think of France,
there is an acceptance of eroticism and nudity there that in America is
completely different.&nbsp; Showing nudity of teenagers, I don&rsquo;t know if the
actors really were 15&hellip;Celine Sciamma: They were.  LN: &hellip;but to show that, because for American men so much of the porn and
erotic film that sells well is this teen scandalous stuff. So, do you
have any fears about that? CS: I had at first because when the movie was released in England it
was rated that you have to be over 16 to see it.&nbsp; I was totally
surprised by that because in France everybody could see it.&nbsp; You could
be 8 years old and go, not that I want that.&nbsp; The English journalists
were telling me, &ldquo;You know, this is going to be hard here because young
girls naked, people are going to suspect something voyeuristic and men
in raincoats are going to come into theaters.&nbsp; But I don&rsquo;t think it
happened.&nbsp; First of all, the film is made by a woman and I think the
perspective I give of those girls is really full of empathy and there
is no twisted thing behind it.&nbsp; I think before you see the movie you
could be afraid but once you&rsquo;ve seen it, I don&rsquo;t think you can take it
the wrong way.&nbsp; I was always asking myself how to find the right
distance with the girls and the question I really asked the most is,
&ldquo;Where do you put the camera?&rdquo;&nbsp; In the locker rooms I wanted th]]></description>
         <pubDate>Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:03:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/2835/interview-cline-sciamma-water-lilies</guid>
      </item><item>
         <title><![CDATA[Interview: Michael Haneke (Funny Games U.S.)]]></title>
         <link>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/894/interview-michael-haneke-funny-games-us</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Michael 
Haneke is the poet of disaffection and as such, he&rsquo;s always looking to make feel his audience uneasy. This Austrian filmmaker doesn&rsquo;t like to follow the rules of entertainment. He works far away from Hollywood therefore he doesn&rsquo;t have to be conventional in his film narratives. He can let you walk out of the theater confused with an open ending, like he did in Cache, (the movie for which he won the best director award in Cannes in 2006 and that Ron Howard wants to do a remake of) and he can also immerse you in a psychological drama with sadomasochistic tints and kick you out of the screening without any answers as he did in The Piano Teacher. He considers each of his eleven movies an experiment because he allows himself to dare, even if for some harsh critics, his undaunted assessments are nothing else than pretentious statements of egotism. Equally loved and hated, Haneke is back and this time he is looking straight into the eye of American audiences. His new movie, Funny Games U.S., will probably be an odd experiment choice for his fans, but for those who don&rsquo;t know him well, the film might be a surprising introductory course. The title is the same as the movie he shot in Germany eleven years ago, in a moment in which shameless violence was taking over American screenings. The film was meant to shock audiences: the odyssey of a family that gets tortured to death by a couple of youngsters for whom violence is just a funny game came without a shiny end either and left spectators feeling paralyzed, disgusted or amazed. The movie almost didn&rsquo;t visually show violence, but by avoiding it and letting audiences imagine what was really happening, Haneke built one of the most disturbing movies to watch ever. It got really good reviews but the filmmaker was disappointed because it didn&rsquo;t reach American audiences who rarely watch movies with subtitles and he wanted the picture to be seen by Americans because its main goal was to make a tough critique to the irresponsible use of violence in movies.That&rsquo;s why last year he accepted to do a remake of Funny Games using American actors but without any changes - making one of those rare in the history of cinema, shot for shot remakes. The result is exactly the same movie with equally good performances. It couldn&rsquo;t be otherwise with a casting that bears the names of Michael Pitt, Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and Brady Corbett.
&nbsp;
I recently chatted with Haneke in New York, first as part of a roundtable and then a one on one. This interview is the result of both conversations...:
Michael Haneke

Barbara Celis: What are you hoping audiences who saw the original are going to get from this remake? Michael Haneke: I think if you have already seen the original it is a special case. You will see the movie because you are curious to compare. It is more an intellectual exercise than anything else for whoever knows it. This film is not done for those audiences, it ]]></description>
         <pubDate>Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
         <guid>http://www.ioncinema.com/news/id/894/interview-michael-haneke-funny-games-us</guid>
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