Give it another 3 months and the folks at Sony Pictures Classics might want to change a couple of items in the header portion of the poster one sheet below (which were are premiering here on IONCINEMA.com!). The festival favorite is picking up prizes almost on a bi-monthly rate (it just claimed the audience award at the Nouveau Cinema Fest in Montreal and yesterday was awarded with Best film at the 3rd International Eurasia festival). Unfortunately, one prize it will miss out on Best Foreign Picture at the upcoming Academy Awards – to bad because it would have not only have been a shoe-in for the final five noms but a serious contender for Best Foreign picture.
Perhaps its a couple of lines of dialogue that has officially caused Eran Kolirin's Cannes-winning, feel good picture to get dissed by Academy rules – but the kick to the groin shouldn't affect the end results. The good-word-of-mouth that surrounds the film and the tonality of the picture
means that this should win over future audiences – SPC is looking at a February 2008th release.
The Band's Visit is the story of an Egyptian Police band that travels to Israel to play at an initiation ceremony for an Arab cultural center, but when they arrive at the airport no one is there to greet them. They set off on their own to find the center, but, through a series of mishaps, end up stranded in a desolate Israeli town somewhere in the heart of the desert. With no transportation available until the next morning they are forced to find lodging with a local cafe owner and some neighboring families. Through a series of comic misadventures the band and the townspeople are forced to interact, ultimately discovering a common understanding that transcends the language barrier, as well as the cultural barrier.
