Major deals are being made in Berlin this weekend on titles that we might eventually see premiere in Cannes — and I think the consensus on Pawel Pawlikowski’s The Woman In the Fifth for a possible Croisette showing is — the Brit filmmaker certainly fits the scene but this doesn’t appear to be fit for this party, at least it doesn’t come across as a Main Competition title. ATO Pictures are definitely not concerned with the quality of the picture – as they picked up theatrical distribution rights to the psychological thriller starring Ethan Hawke and Kristin Scott Thomas. We imagine that a pegged date will come after festival premiere has been realized.
Gist: Based on Douglas Kennedy’s novel, co-written by Pawlikowski and novelist, American writer Tom Ricks (Hawke) arrives in Paris to be closer to his daughter, Chloé, who recently moved there with her mother. Completely broke, he accepts a job as a night guard for a local mob boss. Down in a basement, his only task is to push a button when a bell rings. The tranquility of the night, he hopes, will help him focus on a letter to his daughter. Soon his days become more exciting than his nights when he starts a romance with Margit (Scott Thomas), a mysterious and elegant widow who sets strange rules to their meetings…
Worth Noting: ATO Pictures will next release Azazel Jacobs’ Terri.
Do We Care?: As we cited here, we’re big fans of Last Resort and My Summer of Love, we look forward to Pawlikowski’s “comeback” film.
