• Home
  • Faces
  • Movies
  • The Diaries
  • The Briefly
  • Minimalist Fashionista
  • Selfies Interviews
  • About
  • contact
Menu

E. Nina Rothe

Film. Fashion. Life.
  • Home
  • Faces
  • Movies
  • The Diaries
  • The Briefly
  • Minimalist Fashionista
  • Selfies Interviews
  • About
  • contact
×

The Diaries, because sometimes life needs more. 

Guillermo Del Toro, courtesy of the Marrakech International Film Festival

Guillermo Del Toro, courtesy of the Marrakech International Film Festival

In "Conversation With" Scorsese, Del Toro, Nasrallah and more at the Marrakech Film Fest!

E. Nina Rothe October 24, 2018

If ever there was an upcoming event that felt outrageously exciting, almost too jam packed with greatness (could there ever be such a thing!) it’s the Marrakech International Film Festival — which will take place from November 30th to December 8th, 2018 in the beautiful Moroccan city. Now in its 17th edition, the festival took a year off in 2017 and is coming back stronger, better and more action-packed than ever.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, The Diaries Tags Martin Scorsese, James Gray, Robert De Niro, Thierry Fremaux, Morocco, Marrakech, Yousry Nasrallah, Cristian Mungiu, Agnes Varda, Robin Wright, Cannes Film Festival, FIFM
Comment
Bouli Lanners, flanked by Justine Lacroix, right and Sarah Henochsberg in Claire Burger's 'C'est ça l'amour'  

Bouli Lanners, flanked by Justine Lacroix, right and Sarah Henochsberg in Claire Burger's 'C'est ça l'amour'  

The Venice Diaries: Giornate degli Autori winner Claire Burger on her film 'C’est ça l’amour' (Real Love)

E. Nina Rothe September 8, 2018

Think back to the last time a film redefined love for you. That felt like a magical discovery then, didn't it? For me, cinema exists at its best when it does something that changes me -- and of course I want that change to be for the better.

In Claire Burger's touching follow up to her Cannes Camera d'Or winner 'Party Girl' -- which she co-directed with Marie Amachoukeli and Samuel Theis -- I found a new fatherhood role model. For a woman whose own father was at best unavailable throughout my teenage years and beyond, Burger's wondrous father figure Mario (played by the spellbinding Bouli Lanners) is a revelation and offers a sense of newfound hope. His quest to be a good father to the young Frida (the perfectly rebellious Justine Lacroix) and the teenage Kiki (cool and flirty Sarah Henochsberg) takes the audience on a journey of discovery along with the characters. 

But 'C'est ça l'amour' is a multilayered film and so it's no surprise that, among quite a few strong and beautiful stories featured in this year's Giornate degli Autori line up, Burger's film ended up walking away with the top prize -- the GdA Director's Award.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, Interviews, The Diaries Tags Claire Burger, C'est ça l'amour, Real Love, Venice Days, Venice Film Festival, La Biennale di Venezia, Giornate degli Autori, Cannes Film Festival, Camera d'Or, Bouli Lanners, Sarah Henochsberg, Justine Lacroix, Jonas Carpignano, GDA Director's Award, European Union, Karel Och, Karlovy Vary Film Festival
Comment
Actress Behnaz Jafari with filmmaker Jafar Panahi in a still from '3 Faces'

Actress Behnaz Jafari with filmmaker Jafar Panahi in a still from '3 Faces'

The last of the Cannes Diaries 2018: When all else fails, you can find me at the movies

E. Nina Rothe May 28, 2018

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Actually, this edition of the Festival de Cannes turned out to be a missed opportunity, for media and juries alike to truly take charge of the #TimesUp movement and make of it a lasting course instead of a passing trend. Yes, there were stairs filled with women in pretty dresses, there were hotlines that we could call if we felt threatened or harassed, but ultimately the big prizes went to the big boys. As they have for every edition of the festival, except once, in 1993 when Jane Campion made history as the first and only woman to win the Palme d’Or. 

Yet personally, I loved Cannes more than ever this year. I had a soft place to fall, in the form of a wonderful group of friends I spent my free time with, eating dinners we cooked together and drinking our morning coffee back at our cozy apartment with one breathtaking view. I mean, just look at the Disney fireworks for 'SOLO: A Star Wars Story' display from our terrace!

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, The Diaries Tags Cannes, Festival de cannes, Cannes Film Festival, Jane Campion, TimesUp, Palme d'Or, SOLO: A Star Wars Story, Nadine Labaki, DPA gift lounge, Nathalie Dubois Sissoko, Nandita Das, The National, Capharnaum, caramel, refugees, Amir Naderi, selfies, Asghar Farhadi, Marriott Hotel, Carlton Hotel, Jafar Panahi, 3 Faces, Iranian cinema, Arab cinema, Iran, Abu Dhabi Film Festival, Dubai International Film Festival, UAE Pavilion, DIFF, CNN, Inside the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Italian cinema, Italy, Marco Bellocchio, Gianni Zanasi, La Lotta, Troppa Grazia, Lucia's Grace, Alba Rohrwacher, La Strada dei Samouni, Stefano Savona, Euforia, Valeria Golino, Dogman, Matteo Garrone, Alice Rohrwacher, Happy as Lazzaro, Lazzaro Felice, Italian politics
Comment
Nadine Labaki on the set of 'Capharnaum', photo by Fares Sokhon

Nadine Labaki on the set of 'Capharnaum', photo by Fares Sokhon

My thoughts on women's rights, Nadine Labaki's 'Capharnaum' and the Saudi presence at this year's Cannes Film Festival

E. Nina Rothe May 22, 2018

The winner of the Palme d'Or has been announced and predictably, it's still a male-directed project. There are too few opportunities for us women around and when one of us seizes the chance, we must deal with men (boys?) putting up passive aggressive resistance all the way, and other women trying to take us down.

So, in my humble opinion this "5050X2020" movement which culminated as a red carpet moment may be fun to say and bound to light up with feminine glamour the famous staircase in Cannes, but it is not going anywhere until we aggressively and definitely take up our rightful place.

And yes, call me angry, go ahead. Make my day.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, The Diaries Tags Cannes Film Festival, Festival de cannes, Cannes, 5050X2020, Nadine Labaki, Capharnaum, Saudi Film Council, Saudi Arabian pavilion, Saudi Arabia, arab cinema, John Travolta, Saudi Film Collection, Short Film Corner, Don't Go Too Far, Film School Musical, Haifaa Al Mansour, Maha Dakhil, Maram Taibah, Ahmad Al-Maziad, driving ban in Saudi, Maan and Talha B., Happy as Lazzaro, Alice Rohrwacher, women filmmakers, Fares Sokhon, Palme d'Or
Comment
Lucia's Grace poster

The Cannes Diaries 2018: 'Lucia's Grace' ('Troppa Grazia') is a miracle of a film!

E. Nina Rothe May 19, 2018

One of the freshest and most romantic films I watched in Cannes was Gianni Zanasi’s ‘Lucia’s Grace’ which screened in the Directors’ Fortnight section. On Thursday night it was awarded the Label Europa Cinema prize and personally, I was elated. Zanasi’s film is another one of those modern Italian cinematic gems that have brought me home. Quite literally. 

I moved back to my birth country five years ago because its newest wave of movies and filmmakers made me once again proud of being Italian. And Zanasi’s film also features as Lucia one of the most exciting young actresses in indie cinema today, Alba Rohrwacher, whom we can definitely claim as Italian but who is so much bigger and better than that label alone. Her wit, the way she can take the most basic of characters and build around them grand nuances and subtle mannerisms make her so cool that she may as well read the phone book on the big screen. And I’ll pay to watch that.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, Interviews, The Diaries Tags Lucia's Grace, Troppa Grazia, Cannes, Cannes Diaries, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de cannes, Label Europa Cinema prize, Gianni Zanasi, Italy, Italian cinema, Alba Rohrwacher, Madonna, Virgin Mary, Elio Germano, Hadas Yaron, Japan, Last Shadow Puppets
Comment
Adriano Tardiolo in a still from Alice Rohrwacher's 'Happy as Lazzaro'

Adriano Tardiolo in a still from Alice Rohrwacher's 'Happy as Lazzaro'

The Cannes Diaries 2018: The inimitable Adriano Tardiolo in Alice Rohrwacher's 'Happy as Lazzaro'

E. Nina Rothe May 15, 2018

In the midst of the screening of Alice Rohrwacher's latest 'Happy as Lazzaro' ('Lazzaro Felice') I was overcome by a nearly unbearable sense of pride at being Italian. It's something I've come across one or two times before and I believe it is due to this new wave of fellow compatriot filmmakers who have brought back the idea of magic to Italian cinema.

As I sobbed in my seat, I realized that all the inspiration that lacked in our movies from about the late Seventies to now, has surged powerfully into a movement that has infiltrating the old status quo and created a brand new tsunami of talent in the process. And that simply takes my breath away.

When I sat with Rohrwacher a day later, she admitted that while in the past there existed a competition between Italian filmmakers as to who would be named the best one, now there is a stronger sense of community among the younger talents and that has made for better cinema. 

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, Interviews, The Diaries Tags Lazzaro Felice, Happy as Lazzaro, Alice Rohrwacher, Alba Rohrwacher, Adriano Tradiolo, Cannes, Festival de Cannes, Cannes Film Festival, Cannes Diaries, Orvieto, Inviolata, Palme d'Or, Competition, Lazzaro, religion, faith
5 Comments
Victor Polster in a still from Lukas Dhont's 'Girl'

Victor Polster in a still from Lukas Dhont's 'Girl'

The Cannes Diaries 2018: Lukas Dhont brings to Cannes his perfect 'Girl'

E. Nina Rothe May 13, 2018

At the center of filmmaker Lukas Dhont's groundbreaking first feature 'Girl' -- screening at this year's Festival de Cannes in Un Certain Regard -- is a teenager who wants to be a ballerina. Complex, as all teenagers typically are, beautiful, painfully honest and exquisitely feminine, the only twist here is that Lara was born a boy. And it's obvious from her very first moments on the screen that having that part of the body which separates the boys from the girls is something utterly unbearable for Lara.

But instead of creating conflict around this beauty, be it coming from her family, friends and the world at large, Dhont brings us instead into a world where a girl born into a boy's body who begins treatment to transition to her true self when we first meet her, has all the support she could ever hope for. And yet, her own passions, her self discipline, her sense of displacement inside the body fate dealt her at birth create enough strife, hold-your-breath moments and emotions to fully charge a one hour and forty-five minutes film. And fill our dreams for days and days to come.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, Interviews, The Diaries Tags Girl, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, Lukas Dhont, Belgium, Un Certain Regard, ballerina, Victor Polster, transgender, teenagers
Comment
Ahmed Abdelhafiz and Rady Gamal in a still from A. B. Shawky's 'Yomeddine'

Ahmed Abdelhafiz and Rady Gamal in a still from A. B. Shawky's 'Yomeddine'

The Cannes Diaries 2018: A. B. Shawky's 'Yomeddine' is the road movie to end all road movies

E. Nina Rothe May 12, 2018

Road movies have been done throughout the age of cinema every which way possible in film. And yet, the formula is so perfect that hardly I've found a dissonant note when it comes to taking a story on the road, on the big screen.

In A. B. Shawky's 'Yomeddine', which screened in Competition at this year's Festival de Cannes, the central idea remains that of a journey across the land but the Austro-Egyptian filmmaker -- yes Shawky's mom is Austrian, his father Egyptian and he grew up there -- substitutes the usual characters with two wonderful outcasts who charm their way into our hearts, slowly but surely, and manage to take up home there. Beshay is a small, disfigured man from a leper colony and the Pancho Villa to his Don Quixote is a little orphan boy named Obama. Both Rady Gamal, who plays Beshay and Ahmed Abdelhafiz who plays Obama are on their first acting roles in 'Yomeddine' and their freshness in experience is only paralleled by their awesome talent. Whenever the film could have played on our emotions too heavily, because of its intense subject matter, Gamal and Abdelhafiz find it within themselves to carry us through to the other side, and inspire, fill us with hope in the process.

Read More
In Cinema, Festival, Interviews, The Diaries Tags Egyptian cinema, Egypt, Yomeddine, A. B. Shawky, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, Ahmed Abdelhafiz, Rady Gamal \, road movie, Competition, Camera d'Or, leper colony
Comment
The Poster for Nadine Labaki's 'Capharnaum' - Photo by Fares Sokhn

The Poster for Nadine Labaki's 'Capharnaum' - Photo by Fares Sokhn

The Cannes Diaries 2018: The Doha Film Institute continues to "grab at the stars"

E. Nina Rothe May 11, 2018

Best selling author R.A. Salvatore once wrote "It is better, I think, to grab at the stars than to sit flustered because you know you cannot reach them." In all they do, and how they unrelentingly and tirelessly support filmmakers, the Doha Film Institute folks prove time and time again that they are grabbing at the stars, not sitting by, flustered.

After having been to Qumra this past spring, I can't imagine the Arab cinema landscape without the presence of DFI. In fact, even after the Dubai International Film Festival called off its 2018 edition, because of DFI's mission I remain hopeful for the future of cinema in and from the Region, and I know I'm not the only one to feel that way.

This year, in fact, in Cannes there are six DFI-supported films. In the main Competition, there are Nadine Labaki's 'Capharnaüm' -- check out my interview with the filmmaker in The National newspaper -- and Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s 'The Wild Pear Tree'; ''Sofia' by Meryem Benm’Barek and 'Long Day’s Journey Into Night' by Gan Bi are screening in Un Certain Regard; and in the Directors' Fortnight sidebar audiences will find both 'Weldi' by Mohamed Ben Attia and 'The Load' by Ognjen Glavonić. So, if you thought that DFI was only about cinema from MENA think again!

Read More
In Interviews, Cinema, Festival, The Diaries Tags Doha Film Institute, Hanaa Issa, Khalil Benkirane, Fatma Al Remaihi, DFI, Qumra, Festival de Cannes, Cannes Film Festival
Comment
Window of Emporio Armani in Cannes

The Cannes Diaries 2018: Everyone has their own story

E. Nina Rothe May 11, 2018

This year the festival holds a lot of promise. Arab cinema is at its center with an unprecedented two films in Competition, Nadine Labaki's 'Capharnaüm' and Abu Bakr Shawky's 'Yomeddine', while there are of course quite a few other titles sprinkled among the sidebars, including Mohamed Ben Attia's 'Weldi'. A newly formed Saudi Film Council is occupying a harbor-side pavilion and offering wonderful panels (including one on Sunday the 13th at 11 moderated by yours truly and featuring Annemarie Jacir, Haifaa Al-Mansour, Lamia Chraibi and TIFF's own Cameron Bailey) as well as much welcomed Arabic coffee and dates. When I dropped by on a late afternoon I really cherished that cardamom and saffron infused shot of Arabia and the hospitality brought me back to my days in the Gulf.

Read More
In The Diaries, Festival, Cinema Tags Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Capharnaum, Nadine Labaki, Elia Suleiman, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, Hany Abu Assad, Annemarie Jacir, Yomeddine, Sheherazade, Saudi Arabian pavilion, DPA gift lounge, Abu Bakr Shawky, Mohamed Ben Attia, Weldi, Lamia Chraibi, Cameron Bailey, Critics Week
Comment
Cannes Film Festival poster 2018

The Cannes Film Festival 2018 line-up -- UPDATED!

E. Nina Rothe April 12, 2018

All of us may remember that last year's Palm d'Or winner 'The Square' was not in the original lineup announced at the press conference for the Festival de Cannes 2017. So a few more titles may come in the later days, like Sorrentino's 'Loro' -- a tricky release date for the first half of this six hour movie in Italy at the end of April is probably puzzling the festival organizers -- and the infamous Lars Von Trier. I mean, today with the kind of fascist governments that are in place all over the world, his words and behavior seem meek and subdued. And the visionary that is Cannes artistic director Thierry Fremaux I'm sure realizes that.

Personally, I'm proudest of the two Italian films in the Official Competition this year, Matteo Garrone's 'Dogman' and Alice Rohrwacher's 'Lazzaro Felice'. And of course, Nadine Labaki's 'Capernaum' and Jafar Panahi's 'Three Faces'. Not to mention the excitement at both Spike Lee and Jean-Luc Godard being in Cannes -- two grand Maestros of world cinema. 

Read More
In Festival, Cinema, The Diaries Tags Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, Lineup, Competition, Un Certain Regard, Midnight Screenings, Special Screenings, Out of Competition
Comment
Traveling through the desert in Doha

The Qumra Diaries: The life lessons learned and great persons met, thanks to the Doha Film Institute

E. Nina Rothe March 19, 2018

As of my very first steps at this year's Qumra, around the Souq Waqif, spent inside the Date Market fair and eating a bowl of fragrant Moroccan fava bean soup at a nearby restaurant, to my very last moments wandering inside the Hamad International Airport drinking an espresso with a fellow journalist, Doha gave me the very best she has to offer. And that's pretty darn sensational in a country that can count culture, fashion and heritage at the top of its list of priorities.

From the brand new, still partly in construction National Museum of Qatar rising out of the sands, and shaped like a Desert Rose, the crystallized rock that is formed when lighting hits the dunes, to the institution of the Museum of Islamic Art, where most of the Qumra events and masterclasses are held, to the leisurely, harass-free environment of the Souq itself, I felt like I was being coddled in a cocoon of culture and learning, one that would definitely remain with me for months to come. 

Read More
In The Diaries, Cinema, Fashion Tags Qumra, Doha Film Institute, desert, Desert Rose, Tilda Swinton, Gianfranco Rosi, Bennett Miller, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Sandy Powell OBE, Qatar, Doha, Souq Waqif, Richard Pena, Gangs of New York, Shakespeare in Love, Velvet Goldmine, documentaries, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, date festival, date market doha, Outlaid Mouaness\, 1982, Lebanon, The Rifle The Jackal The Wolf and the Boy, Dominga Sotomayor, The Village, Late to Die Young, South America, Chile, Santiago, Toronto International Film Festival, Cameron Bailey, Wong Kar-wai, Kenneth Branagh, Hercule Poirot, The Atlantic, Elijah Wolfson, Notturno, hondros, Greg Campbell, Chris Hondros, photojournalism
Comment
Apichatpong Weerasethakul talks to Richard Peña during a Qumra MasterclassPhoto courtesy of the Doha Film Institute

Apichatpong Weerasethakul talks to Richard Peña during a Qumra Masterclass

Photo courtesy of the Doha Film Institute

The Qumra Diaries: Wisdom from the Masters with Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Andrey Zvyagintsev

E. Nina Rothe March 16, 2018

The great thing about an event like Qumra, the yearly industry meet-up organized by the Doha Film Institute to inspire and connect filmmakers with the world of cinema business, is that one gets to discover wonderful gems. And not only the up and coming filmmakers whose projects were featured in this fourth edition, some of which are definitely heading to Cannes! I also had the leisure to rediscover Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev (‘Leviathan’ and ‘Loveless’ among others) and hear his insight during one of the six masterclasses, and actually uncover ApichatpongWeerasethakul, watch his dreamy work for the first time. And what a wonder that was! As Italian Maestro Gianfranco Rosi admitted to me later, I also remained enchanted by Weerasethakul’s ‘Emerald’ a dreamy look at a rundown motel, featuring flying particles and voiceovers, which I’m still working through and thinking about quite a few days later.

Read More
In Cinema, The Diaries Tags Andrey Zvyagintsev, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Qumra, Doha Film Institute, Russia, Thailand, cinema, Lav Diaz, Richard Pena, masterclasses, Steven Spielberg, Cannes Film Festival, Festival de Cannes, Palme d'Or, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Leviathan, Loveless, Gianfranco Rosi, Emerald, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Sleep cinema hotel, Bero Beyer, dreams, Elena, Golden Globe winner, Oscar-nominated, Boatman, Killdozer, Colorado
Comment
Sofia Coppola (left) and Kirsten Dunst on the set of 'Marie Antoinette', photographed by Brigitte Lacombe

Sofia Coppola (left) and Kirsten Dunst on the set of 'Marie Antoinette', photographed by Brigitte Lacombe

The Qumra Diaries: Brigitte Lacombe and the power of a photograph

E. Nina Rothe March 11, 2018

I know that a Diaries series is meant to go chronologically, yet there are moments when the rules need to be broken.

For me, hearing master photographer and longtime Doha Film Institute collaborator Brigitte Lacombe talk about cinema and fashion from a photographic point of view was one such moment. I could not wait to get home and write about the pleasant afternoon I spent in her company -- along with a theater-full of attendees of this Qumra talk -- and her sister's, video photographer Marian Lacombe.

Read More
In Cinema, Fashion, The Diaries Tags Brigitte Lacombe, Marian Lacombe, photography, Qumra 18, Qumra, Doha, Doha Film Institute, film, Meryl Streep, Qatar Museum, Hey'Ya Arab women in sport, The Female Lead, Christiane Amanpour, Ava DuVernay, Jo Malone, Birdman, Instagram, Mick Jagger, Martin Scorsese, Anne Roth, Nicole Kidman, Gangs of New York, Leonardo Di Caprio, Marie Antoinette, Sofia Coppola, All the President's Men, Jennifer Lawrence, Dior, Cannes Film Festival, Nadine Labaki, Omar Sharif, I AM FILM, Arab filmmakers, Katara, Julian Schnabel, Emma Jones, Emma Pritchard Jones
Comment
Tilda Swinton photographed by Brigitte Lacombe

Tilda Swinton photographed by Brigitte Lacombe

Iconic Masters and golden projects featured at this year's Qumra in Doha

E. Nina Rothe March 5, 2018

Qatar is the couture state of the Arab world. They watched and learned from the mistakes of all the other Gulf countries that were declared as states before them, and then Qatar set about to reinvent how we view culture, fashion, art and film. You can't watch an award ceremony these days without the presence for the Doha Film Institute in the credits of at least one of the films nominated, the Museum Authority of the peninsular state has assembled and created, and is set to unveil more beauty than my eyes can hold -- just a visit to the Islamic Art Museum will confirm my words -- and of course, the Emir's family owns some of the fashion world's most beloved brands. 

Read More
In Cinema, The Diaries Tags Qatar, Doha, Doha Film Institute, Okja, Masters, filmmakers, Brigitte Lacombe, Tilda Swinton, Gulf countries, Arab world, Islamic Art Museum, Qumra, Gianfranco Rosi, E. Nina Rothe, feature narrative, documentaries, Berlinale, Golden Bear, Fuocoammare, Fire at Sea, Oscars, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thai, Thailand, Cannes Film Festival, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Palme d'Or, Leviathan, Loveless, Russia, Golden Globes, Andrey Zvyagintsev, Sandy Powell OBE, The Young Victoria, Shakespeare in Love, The Aviator, Bennett Miller, Capote, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Truman Capote, Elia Suleiman, Hanaa Issa, DFI
Comment
Claudia Cardinale © Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche/Getty Images

Claudia Cardinale © Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche/Getty Images

Jake Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson and More: What I Learned from the Stars in Cannes

E. Nina Rothe February 3, 2018

While in Cannes, I also wanted to find some answers to my own doubts, answers on how to combat the virus of fake news, how to achieve my true self and why movie theaters can never be replaced by a computer. 

I found my answers in the stars. The movie stars. 

Read More
In Cinema, Interviews Tags Cannes, Festival de Cannes, Cannes Film Festival, Dustin Hoffman, Tilda Swinton, Emma Thompson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Agnes Varda, Jr, Thierry Fremaux
Comment
Abel Ferrara’s ‘Alive in France’

Abel Ferrara’s ‘Alive in France’

The Cannes Diaries: Agnès Varda & JR, Abel Ferrara and His Musicians and ‘Golden Years’

E. Nina Rothe February 3, 2018

There have been many emotional moments for me at this year’s Festival de Cannes, like hearing Dustin Hoffman talk intimately about the death of his mother in law during a press junket, Thierry Frémaux giving his speech from the stage of the Sale Debussy during the evening in honor of French maestro André Téchiné, while pointing out of the legendary actresses and actors the filmmaker has worked with in his lengthy career, and catching up with favorite filmmaker Amos Gitai about his vision for peace in Israel. 

Read More
In Fashion, Cinema, The Diaries Tags Cannes Film Festival, Agnes Varda, JR, Abel Ferrara, Andre Techine, Golden Years, Faces, Faces Places
Comment
Dustin Hoffman and Noah Baumbach on the set of ‘ The Meyerowitz Stories’

Dustin Hoffman and Noah Baumbach on the set of ‘ The Meyerowitz Stories’

The Cannes Diaries: NYC Stories, Recognizing ‘Tehran Taboo’, and a Mistreated Beauty

E. Nina Rothe February 3, 2018

Every day I’m in Cannes for the Festival I deal with an internal struggle that makes existentialist wonderings seem like a trip to the ice cream shop. Should I watch films until I drop, or spend more time at the various cocktail parties that dot the Croisette every late afternoon? Is it OK to view a film on a link while sitting at my computer, or should I make sure I get to experience each and every oeuvre on the big screen, as god intended and Cannes artistic director Thierry Frémaux insists upon? Am I allowed to choose between Jake Gyllenhaal, Tilda Swinton, Emma Thompson, Dustin Hoffman, Noah Baumbach or a Nespresso? Attend a dressed-down press screening or get dolled up for the black tie gala? Oh, the choices! It’s times like these I wish I could be cloned. 

Read More
In The Diaries Tags The Meyerowitz Stories, Tehran Taboo, Cannes, Cannes Film Festival, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Beauty and the Dogs
Comment
The Cannes Red Carpet

The Cannes Diaries: A Cowboy, the Courage to Dream Peace and a Fairy Tale

E. Nina Rothe February 3, 2018

Thierry Frémaux is a cinema potentate. And that’s a great thing!

While most people at the top usually usurp their power for personal gain, the director of the Festival de Cannes uses his inimitable influence for the good of cinema. It’s a vision which may eventually — if filmmakers have their way — change the world. Thanks to ones like Amos Gitai, Chloé Zhao and Bong Joon-ho to cite a few whose latest oeuvres I’ve watched these past 24 hours — change the world for the better. 

On a personal note, watching Frémaux’s elegant and welcoming presence at the top of the red carpet staircase before each of the official screenings has been a breath of style air, in a world that’s increasingly forgetting the power of modesty and class.

Read More
In The Diaries Tags The Rider, Cannes Film Festival, Amos Gitai, Okja, Netflix, Cannes
Comment
CLAUDIA CARDINALE Photo: © Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche/Getty Images

CLAUDIA CARDINALE 

Photo: © Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche/Getty Images

The Cannes Diaries: From Virtual Reality to Dreaming Awake with ‘Sicilian Ghost Story’

E. Nina Rothe February 3, 2018

I’m hyper aware and over stimulated as I begin this Cannes experience, after having taken a year off from the grandest film festival in the world. On my flight over, I notice everything, even the exceedingly handsome, slim and tall flight attendant in his crisp white shirt and tight black vest. The coffee taste better, and we’re talking short haul airplane coffee, the air is crisper, the sun on the tarmac, warmer. Kinder maybe...

Read More
Tags cinema, Cannes Film Festival, Sicilian Ghost Story, Virtual reality
Comment
← Newer
Post Archive
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • April 2020
  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
 

Featured Posts

Featured
The Extrardinary Miss Flower review for E Nina Rothe.jpg
May 2, 2025
The power of one, letter: 'The Extraordinary Miss Flower' review
May 2, 2025
May 2, 2025
Most People Die on Sundays for ENinaRothe.jpg
Apr 28, 2025
To be young, gifted and... gay! A review of Iair Said's 'Most People Die on Sundays'
Apr 28, 2025
Apr 28, 2025
the-accountant-2-ben-affleck-jon-bernthal for ENinaRothe.jpg
Apr 25, 2025
I'll give you one, no make that 2 good reasons to watch 'The Accountant 2' with Ben Affleck
Apr 25, 2025
Apr 25, 2025
UnBroken_Weber_Siblings_Allied Forces_Bremerhaven_Germany_1946 for ENinaRothe.png
Apr 21, 2025
Courage decoded: Beth Lane's 'UnBroken' is the film you need to watch on Netflix
Apr 21, 2025
Apr 21, 2025
Olmo Schnabel's Pet Shop Days for ENinaRothe.jpg
Mar 12, 2025
Olmo Schnabel's 'Pet Shop Days', EP'd by Martin Scorsese to finally release in the US
Mar 12, 2025
Mar 12, 2025