MIRFF - Films & Schedule

MONTREAL INTERNATIONAL ROMANTIC FILM FESTIVAL
FROM FEBRUARY 12TH TO 18TH AT

Cinema du Parc

(www.cinemaduparc.com)

On the occasion of Valentine’s Day, why not discover romantic films from here and from abroad?

With film premieres, recent films and classics, in this first edition of the film festival we invite you to experience the drama, the laughter and animation of love and romance, with stories from yesterday and today.

SCHEDULE :

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 12TH AT 6:30 PM Opening night cocktail at Cinema Du Parc. Marilou Berry, César nominated leading actress of opening night film, UGLY MELANIE (VILAINE), will be in attendance.
	FRIDAY FEBRUARY 12TH AT 7PM UGLY MELANIE (VILAINE) (Original French version) France. 2008. Dir. : Jean-Patrick Benes, Allan Mauduit. 35 mm. 100 min. Cast : Marilou Berry, Frédérique Bel, Pierre-François Martin-Laval, Joséphine de Meaux. North American Premiere. Mélanie (Marilou Berry) is too nice. Her mother, her boss, her friends, her neighbours and even her neighbour’s dog know it and shamelessly take advantage of it. One day, after an ultimate humiliation at the hands of her friends, Mélanie decides to change; it’s time to get revenge on all those who took advantage of her! However, meanness is not something you can learn in one day, especially when you’ve been nice all your life… Along her path to retribution, she is stumped by a bouquet of flowers that mysteriously appears daily on her doorstep. Nomination : Césars 2009 : Marilou Berry (Most promising young actress). "Vilaine is a gem of intense comedy, a whimsical fairy tale in which Cinderella gets her revenge.” – LA CROIX (Original French version)
	LE COURAGE D'AIMER (Original French version) (Short Film to be presented before UGLY MELANIE-VILAINE.) Québec, 2008. Dir. : Michel-Étienne Cordey. Digital projection, 6 min. 40 sec. Cast : Marcel Sabourin, Adam Kosh, Amélie B. Simard, Bella Bolduc, William Dextradeur, Marie-Laure Arcouette, Marc-François Blondin et Amélie Pagé. Le courage d'aimer, is the story of a man who doesn’t allow an illness to mar his life (Original French version)
	SATURDAY FEBRUARY 13TH AT 7PM NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU (Original English version) France, USA. 2009. Dir. : Fatih Akin, Yvan Attal, Allen Hughes, Shunji Iwai, Wen Jiang, Joshua Martson, Mira Nair, Brett Ratner, Randall Balsmeyer, Shekhar Kapur, Natalie Portman. 35mm. 103 min. With Natalie Portman, Bradley Cooper, Shia LeBeouf, Ethan Hawke, Orlando Bloom, Hayden Christensen, Christina Ricci, Robin Wright Penn, John Hurt and many others… In the city that never sleeps, love is always on the mind. Those passions come to life in NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU – a collaboration of storytelling from some of today’s most imaginative filmmakers and featuring an all-star cast. Together they create a kaleidoscope of the spontaneous, surprising, electrifying human connections that pump the city’s heartbeat. Sexy, funny, haunting and revealing encounters unfold beneath the Manhattan skyline. From Tribeca to Central Park to Brooklyn the story weaves a tale of love as diverse as the very fabric of New York itself. (Original English version)
	SUNDAY FEBRUARY 14TH AT 7PM LOVE STORY (Original English version with French subtitles) USA. 1970. Dir.: Arthur Hiller. Digital projection. 100 min. Cast: Ali MacGraw, Ryan O’Neal An American classic from which the line “Love means never having to say you’re sorry” became legendary. Based on the best-selling novel about love and bereavement, this is one of the greatest love stories ever told on film. A young Harvard student, Oliver (Ryan O’Neal), falls in love with a working class quick -minded student, Jennifer (Ali MacGraw). They marry against Oliver’s father’s wishes and they struggle financially as they decide to make it on their own. As they are ready to take the next step and start a family, their love story hits a wall when they find out that Jennifer is facing a grave illness. Won Oscar; 11 awards and 13 nominations. Love Story is ranked in the top 10 of the American Film Institute’s AFI 100 Years... 100 PASSIONS, a three-hour special television event in which the 100 greatest love stories of all time were revealed. (Original English version with French subtitles)
	PORTES OUVERTES (Original French version) (Short film to be presented before LOVE STORY.) Québec 2007. Dir.: Carlo Ghioni. Fiction. Digital projection, 7 min. 32 sec. Cast: Catherine De Sève (Céleste), Patrice Dubois (Émile), Daniel Thomas (Hugues) et Félix Couture (Voice of child) Céleste is confronted with a breakup which was inevitable in her opinion. Her encounter with Émile, a neighbor who gives new life to abandoned objects, stumps her ideals and the way she perceives life. She becomes more aware of Émile's efforts who attempts through his art, to give new life to Céleste's love story. (Original French version)
	MONDAY FEBRUARY 15TH AT 7PM SITA SINGS THE BLUES (Original English version with French sub-titles) USA. 2008. Dir.: Nina Paley. Digital projection. 82 min. The greatest break-up story ever told. The film features two parallel stories - one based on an Indian mythical legend and the other from present day San Francisco - about love and devotion. Sita Sings the Blues is an animated version of the epic Indian tale Ramayana set to the 1920s jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw. The movie is about Sita, the Hindu Goddess from the epic “The Ramayana”, who accompanies Lord Rama on a 14 year exile in the forest. Because of her legendary beauty, Sita is abducted by Ravana, the ruler of Lanka. During her capture she remains devoted to Lord Rama and hopes he rescues her. When he does, he is suspicious of her purity after she announces to him that she is pregnant with his child. Lord Rama filled with more suspicion and embarrassment, casts Sita to the depths of the forest where she gives birth to his male twins. When it is too late, Lord Rama realizes that Sita was always faithful and devoted to him. Cut to present day San Francisco, in an episode from the Director’s own life, where a young couple’s relationship is challenged after the husband accepts a job offer in India. After his move he becomes more distant with her and decides to break up with her by e-mail. Won Crystal Bear Special Mention (Berlin Film Festival); won other awards for Best Film. “ I was enchanted. I was swept away. I was smiling from one end of the film to the other. It is astonishingly original.” – ROGER EBERT (Original English version with French sub-titles)
	TINH TU (Original French version) (Short Film. To be presented before SITA SINGS THE BLUES.) Québec 2008. Dir.: Chérine Khoury. Fiction. Digital projection, 6 min. 23 sec. Cast: Alexandre Dubois (Pierric and Pierro) et Geneviève La (Stéphanie Ruest). A space, a man, a woman, a dream. (Original French Version)
	TUESDAY FEBRUARY 16TH AT 7PM GUY AND MADELINE ON A PARK BENCH (Original English version) USA. 2009. Dir.: Damien Chazelle. Digital projection. 82 min. With Jason Palmer, Desiree Garcia, Sandha Khin, Andre Hayward, Frank Garvin, Alma Prelec. Montreal Premiere. Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench is about the often uneasy but always beautiful relationship between music and love. It tells the story of a young Boston jazz musician who drifts from affair to affair, his trumpet the only constant in his life. He makes a promising connection with an aimless introvert named Madeline, who immediately takes to his music. Their relationship is cut short, however, when Guy leaves her for another, more outgoing love interest. The two separated lovers slowly wind their way back into each other’s lives, through a series of romances and near-romances punctuated by song. A full-fledged musical that recasts the MGM tradition in a gritty, near-documentary style, Guy and Madeline stars Jason Palmer, recently named by Down Beat Magazine one of the top twenty-five “Trumpeters for the Future,” and features all original music composed by Justin Hurwitz and recorded by the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra. The film was shot on black-and-white 16mm and also features Desiree Garcia, Sandha Khin, Andre Hayward (trombonist with Betty Carter, the Dave Holland Big Band, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra), and Kelly Kaleta (cast member of Imagine Tap). Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench was a sponsored project of IFP (www.ifp.org). Winner, Special Jury Prize, Torino Film Festival; Winner, Honorable Mention, Starz Denver Film Festival; Nominee, Gotham Independent Film Awards; Nominee, Mavericks Competition, Calgary International Film Festival. "A magical amalgam of Jean-Luc Godard, Miles Davis, Morris Engel and 'The Umbrellas of Cherbourg,' helmer Damien Chazelle's 'Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench' catches you off-guard and keeps you there... A surprise, a delight and a whimsical experiment... There are moments here that are simply transcendent." - Variety "If swirling, twirling musicals from the 1940s make your heart beat a little faster, Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench may be the best movie ticket you buy all year." - NBC New York "Blissful, brilliant... This is the true gem of 2009; don't miss it." - TIMEOUT NEW YORK "The most-buzzed about movie at the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival...” – THE BOSTON GLOBE "This is the finest U.S. indie movie of the past year." – FILMMAKER MAGAZINE (Original English version)
	TINH TU (Original French version) (Short Film. To be presented before GUY AND MADELINE ON A PARK BENCH.) Québec 2008. Dir.: Chérine Khoury. Fiction. Digital projection, 6 min. 23 sec. Cast: Alexandre Dubois (Pierric and Pierro) et Geneviève La (Stéphanie Ruest). A space, a man, a woman, a dream. (Original French Version)
	WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 17TH AT 7PM LOVE AND SAVAGERY (Original English version) Canada, Ireland. 2009. Dir. : John N. Smith. 35mm. 95 min. Love & Savagery takes place in 1969 Ballyvaughan, in Ireland. Newfoundlander, poet and geologist Michael (Allan Hawco) is there to look at rocks, though swiftly becomes interested in local barmaid Cathleen (Sarah Greene). But Cathleen's bound for the nunnery and the village's highly protective men-folk don't take kindly to some outsider distracting fair Cathleen so near to her betrothal with the almighty. John N. Smith (Dangerous Minds) directs a straightforward but affecting story---adapted by Des Walsh from his own book---that feels as if it could have been made in 1969, it's so comfortingly familiar. Visuals of Ireland's green slopes and fractured stone never fail to impress, though you'd better enjoy traditional Irish music because you won't escape it here. (Original English version)
	PORTES OUVERTES (Original French version) (Short film to be presented before LOVE AND SAVAGERY.) Québec 2007. Dir.: Carlo Ghioni. Fiction. Digital projection, 7 min. 32 sec. Cast: Catherine De Sève (Céleste), Patrice Dubois (Émile), Daniel Thomas (Hugues) et Félix Couture (Voice of child) Céleste is confronted with a breakup which was inevitable in her opinion. Her encounter with Émile, a neighbor who gives new life to abandoned objects, stumps her ideals and the way she perceives life. She becomes more aware of Émile's efforts who attempts through his art, to give new life to Céleste's love story. (Original French version)
THURSDAY FEBRUARY 18TH AT 6:30PM Closing night party at Restaurant LaKloche (www.lakloche.ca), located at 5637 Avenue du Parc, starting at 6:30 pm. Festival ticket holders will get a complimentary glass of wine and appetizers to celebrate the closing of the first edition.
	THURSDAY FEBRUARY 18TH AT 7PM CASABLANCA (Original English version with French subtitles) USA. 1942. Réal.: Michael Curtiz. Projection numérique. 102 min. With Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Peter Lorre. The classic and much-loved romantic melodrama Casablanca, always found in every top-ten lists of films, is a masterful tale of two men vying for the same woman's love. The story of political and romantic espionage is set against the backdrop of the wartime conflict between democracy and totalitarianism. With rich and smoky atmosphere, anti-Nazi propaganda, Max Steiner's superb musical score, suspense, unforgettable characters and memorable dialogues, it is one of the most popular films of all time - focused on the themes of lost love, honor and duty, self-sacrifice and romance within a chaotic world. (Original English version with French subtitles)