1. Harvey Weinstein, the Mac Daddy of Miramax was at the American Pavilion
watching NBA Game 4 with Spike Lee. But the crowd thinned out as the game
went until 2:30 am. With screenings beginning at 8:30 am, only the most
hardy souls or those planning to sleep in hung on for the final buzzer.
2. "Trainspotting" is the special screening of the day, which
means it didn't
qualify for
competition but someone must think it is pretty unique. Well, actually
unique is a
very good word for this offbeat look at the alienated, disaffected group of
young
men in Edinburgh. Oh come on, let's face it, these are a bunch of wacked out
kids, and occasionally the whip smart script and the timing of Ewan McGregor
as
Mark Renton redeem this mess. But not often enough. Ewan and director Danny
Boyle are in town to promote "Trainspotting", but don't offer any real
insight into
these strange men.
3. On the other hand, Lars Von Trier has admitted that Cannes frightens him.
So the Great Dane chose to stay in Denmark, while his "Breaking
the Waves"
faces competition. He
has said that he has taken a basically cheesy story and given it over to
great actors. Emily Watson portrays Bess, a naive girl who marries the
worldly Jan
(Stellan Skarsgard). All is well until he is paralyzed in an accident and
asks her
to take a lover. Yes, it does sound like an episode of "All My Children",
but Von
Trier's camera work sets it apart. Emily Watson tells us that scenes were
barely
rehearsed and camera angles rarely planned. The result somehow achieves Von
Trier's hopes of elevating the story line.
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