Films

International Competition

• 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days / Cristian Mungiu (Romania, 2007) Palme díOr 2007 Cannes International Film Festival

  Director Cristian Mungiu's drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days unfolds in Romania in the late '80s, during the last waning days of Communist rule. Anamaria Marinca and Laura Vasiliu play, respectively, Otilia and Gabita, two female friends and students who share a Bucharest flat.

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• Control / Anton Corbijn (UK / USA, 2007) Official Selection Cannes 2007 Directorsí Fortnight

  Directed by acclaimed music photographer Anton Corbijn and based on Deborah Curtis' "Touching From A Distance", Control is the story of the late Joy Division Singer Ian Curtis' life, from te band's rise to fame to his tragic suicide.

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• The Edge of Heaven / Fatih Akin (Germany, Turkey, 2007) Official Selection Cannes 2007, In Competition. Winner ñ Best Screenplay

  A Turkish man travels to Istanbul to find the daughter of his father's former girlfriend.

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• Ezra / Newton I. Aduaka (Nigeria / France, 2007) Sundance 2007 ñ Grand Jury Prize nominee, FESPACO 2007 ñ Grand prize Award
• Foster Child / Brillante ìDanteî Mendoza (Philippines, 2007) Official Selection Cannes 2007 Directorsí Fortnight

  Thelma, together with her husband Dado and two teenage sons Gerald and Yuri belongs to an urban poor family in Manila. They are hired by a local Foster Care Facility to provide temporary home and carre to abandoned babies pending the babies formal adoption.

• Irina Palm / Sam Gabarski (Belgium, 2007) Berlinale International Film Festival 2007 ñ Reader Jury of the ìBerliner Morgenpostî

  Legendary rocker Marianne Faithfull (of "As Tears Go By" and Broken English fame) stars in director Sam Garbarski's gently observed comedy-drama Irina Palm (2007). She portrays Maggie, a working-class quinquagenarian increasingly desperate to cover the cost of her ailing grandson's (Corey Burke) operation.

• Love and Honor / Yoji Yamada (Japan, 2006) Official Selection Panorama Berlinale International Film Festival 2007

  Yoji Yamada's torchy Japanese drama Love and Honor (AKA Bushi no Ichibun) follows the heartbreaking plight of Shinnojo (Yoji Yamada), a young man employed as a "food taster" for the imperial family. Shinnojo's position comes to a sudden and tragic end when he consumes poisoned fish intended for the clan leader and is forever robbed of his sight.

• The Namesake / Mira Nair (India / USA, 2006)

  A couple coming to terms with living in a new culture discover their troubles are compounded by their son in this drama from filmmaker Mira Nair. Ashoke (Irfan Khan) and Ashima (Tabu) are a young couple who are brought together in an arranged marriage and soon leave Calcutta to seek their fortune in America.

• Persepolis / Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud Official Selection Cannes 2007; Winner ñ Jury Prize (tied with ìSilent Lightî)

  ìPersepolisî is the poignant coming-of-age story of a precocious and outspoken young Iranian girl that begins during the Islamic Revolution.

• Postmodern Life of My Aunt / Ann Hui (Hong Kong, 2006)
• Sankara / Prasanna Jayakody (Sri Lanka, 2006) Cairo Film Festival 2006 ñ Silver Pyramid Award
• Shotgun Stories / Jeff Nichols (USA, 2007)
• Where are you going, Moshe? / Hassan Benjelloun (Morocco, 2007)

ASEAN Competition

• Balikbayan Box / Mes De Guzman (Philippines, 2007)
• Love Conquers All / Tan Chui Mui (Malaysia, 2006) Tiger Award ñ Rotterdam 2006, Best Film ñ Asian Digital Competition, Hong Kong International Film Festival 2007

  A love story. At first sight maybe a simple love story. About how blind a girl in love can be. Slowly but unavoidable the story will become less simple, will raise more questions without giving too many answers.

• Love for Share / Nia Di Nata (Indonesia, 2006) Best Feature Film ñ Hawaii International Film Festival 2006
• Mukhsin / Yasmin Ahmad (Malaysia, 2006) Glass Bear (Special Mention) ñ Berlinale International Film Festival 2007 (Generations)
• Paoís Story / Quang Hai Ngo (Vietnam, 2006)
• Ploy / Pen-ek Ratanaruang / Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (Thailand, 2007) Official Selection ñ Cannes Directorsí Fortnight 2007
• Syndromes and a Century / Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand, 2006) Official Selection ñ Venice Film Festival 2006
• Things We Do When We Fall in Love / James Lee (Malaysia, 2007)
• The Unseeable / Wisit Sasanatieng (Thailand, 2006)
• Village People Radio Show / Amir Muhammad (Malaysia, 2007)

  The precise role of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) in the history of the nation is still a controversial and hotly contested one. It was a player in the anti-colonial struggle against occupying Japanese forces (from 1942-5) and later the returning British administration (1945-1957). However, its continual commitment to armed struggle in the post-Independence era depleted much public support.