Robert Mitchum photographed by Bruce Weber

The Venice Diaries: Bruce Weber paints a daring portrait of Robert Mitchum in 'Nice Girls Don't Stay for Breakfast'

E. Nina Rothe September 3, 2018

As I sat down to meet legendary fashion photographer Bruce Weber I said "Mr. Weber, I can't say I grew up with your photographs because I'm older than I look, but I definitely grew into my sexuality thanks to your iconic images." It's true. Those NYC billboards in Times Square of underwear models for Calvin Klein, the Ralph Lauren "out of Africa" campaign, Kate Moss in the bathtub, the beach scenes, the catalogues I devoured before the advent of the internet, I grew into my skin thanks to Weber's images.

Today, Weber has helped me to rediscover the beauty and genius of classic American actor Robert Mitchum. 'Nice Girls Don't Stay for Breakfast' screens at the Venice Film Festival in the Venice Classics section and is co-produced by Weber's wife Nan Bush. In the documentary, Mitchum is shown as never before, a singer, a lover and a poet, aided in part by cameos by Johnny Depp, Benicio Del Toro, Polly Bergen, Brenda Vaccaro and Liam Neeson, among many many more.

So why a film about Mitchum, why from Weber and why now?

Tye Sheridan and Jeff Goldblum in a still from Rick Alverson's 'The Mountain'

The Venice Diaries: Rick Alverson's 'The Mountain' shows us the perils of an American "antiseptic utopia"

E. Nina Rothe September 1, 2018

Filmmaker Rick Alverson has never made films that are easily comprehensible to an audience. His work is the antithesis to the American superhero movie. From his first work 'The Builder' in 2010 he's proudly yet quietly worn the "independent filmmaker" badge of American moviemakers. In the tradition of greats like Dennis Hopper and John Cassavetes who came before him.

In his latest film 'The Mountain' which premiered in Competition at this year's Venice Film Festival, Alverson throws the audience a proverbial bone. What I mean is that 'The Mountain', starring Jeff Goldblum and Tye Sheridan, is as close to a traditional film as we will ever get from Alverson. While he still describes it as "an anti-utopian film" in his director's statement, 'The Mountain' takes the audience through a hippie trippy ride on a sparse, pastel hued rollercoaster with few words, great acting, haunting images and sounds and by the end, leaves us feeling lobotomizes. I could swear the entire crowd of the Sala Darsena, where the press and industry screening took place the day before the film's official premiere, walked out with a very specific look on their faces. Not unlike that of the leading character of Andy, played by Sheridan.

Alfonso Cuarón directs Yalitza Aparicio on the set of 'Roma', photo by Carlos Somonte for Netflix

The Venice Diaries: Alfonso Cuarón's 'Roma' takes us on a journey back in time

E. Nina Rothe August 30, 2018

It is immediately clear, from the beautiful black and white shots and the poetically intimate details that 'Roma' is a very personal film for Alfonso Cuarón. At times, the real-life inspired story of a middle class family in the Colonia Roma neighborhood of Mexico City, told through the eyes of their housekeeper Cleo, felt so private, so confidential, it seemed like I was intruding on something really special. But I still could not bring myself to look away, I didn't want to stop watching, I also didn't want the film to end because for more than two hours, Cuarón paid homage to womanhood. It takes a big man to do that and an even bigger filmmaker to get the message across.

Ryan Gosling in 'First Man', photo courtesy of NBC Universal

The Venice Diaries: Oh La La Moon! Damien Chazelle and Ryan Gosling soar high in 'First Man'

E. Nina Rothe August 29, 2018

Forget your tired, old costumed superheroes. It is time to reconnect with the original all American champion thanks to Ryan Gosling, in Damien Chazelle's latest masterpiece 'First Man'. The opening film at this year’s Venice Film Festival makes cinematic dreams come true.

'Joy' by Sudabeh Mortezai, featuring Joy Anwulika Alphonsus

The Venice Diaries: Forget what you've heard, this year's festival is all about women's stories!

E. Nina Rothe August 27, 2018

So you may have read by now that the Venice Film Festival is being singled out for not having enough women filmmakers in their Competition line-up. One publication even went so far to criticize Italian culture as a whole, and they used two non-Italian reporters to write the story of course -- one the token male journalist. Because a single, lone, able woman journalist would not have been able to do the job?

Ever hear that saying "don't talk bad about my mama?"

Anyway, while everyone is up in arms for yet another slight at womanhood, I say, get over it! I'm a woman, I'm Italian and I feel very well represented in Venice -- thank you very much. In fact, I have never seen so many beautiful women's stories, so much truth for our gender and so much care in telling those stories as I see in the various line-ups and sidebars this year at La Biennale del Cinema. But of course, you'd have to look beyond the media-selling headlines, watch deeper, dig in the sidebars too and know in your heart that great cinema was never about gender, rather about quality and vision. Just like it ain't about politics, even when the subject is political.

Carlo Chatrian, artistic director of the Locarno Festival and Ted Hope — Carlo Chatrian, artistic director of the Locarno Festival and Ted Hope

The Locarno Diaries: Ted Hope, Bruno Dumont's vision and the luxury of pressing "pause"

E. Nina Rothe August 3, 2018

A great film festival for me is defined not only by the quality of films I get to watch but also the meetings and chance encounters that happen along the way. In a queue waiting for a film to start, sitting in the lobby of a hotel waiting for an interview and sometimes, just stopping for a whole hour or two in the midst of the hectic festival schedule makes all the sense in the world.

I tried this yesterday afternoon and went to visit a friend in the restaurant of The Belvedere hotel, a good while after lunch and as interview junkets were being conducted all around me. It turned out to be the best decision of the day.

Gianfranco Rosi gave a Masterclass at this year's Qumra

The Qumra Diaries: Wisdom from the Masters with Tilda Swinton and Gianfranco Rosi

E. Nina Rothe March 12, 2018

The greatness of Qumra, the annual industry event held by the Doha Film Institute to help connect, inspire and encourage filmmakers, lies in its diversity of activities. From the daily working breakfasts with some of the most well-respected festival directors and programmers, sales agents and producers to the Masterclasses with cinema greats, from its Qumra Talks to the networking sessions held each afternoon just around the corner from my hotel, there is a buzz of activity at any given moment and even a non-filmmaker like me can feel the excitement of great cinema in the making.