22/10/2009

Genre films are slowly making a comeback in French-speaking Belgium. The latest International Francophone Film Festival (FIFF) offered a broad panorama of recent Francophone comedies, in particular with Les Barons [+see also:
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trailer
Interview with director and actress of…
interview: Nabil Ben Yadir
film profile] and Simon Konianski [+see also:
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interview: Micha Wald, director of Sim…
film profile], as well a a very different style with the Belgian avant-premiere of Bruno Forzani and Hélène Cattet’s Amer [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (“Bitter”).

The film certainly left an impression on viewers, which is often a good sign. Although some weren’t drawn into the film’s unusual world, enthusiasts of the genre praised the boldness of its narrative and aesthetic risk-taking.

Amer is the first feature produced by Anonymes Films, headed by Eve Commenge, who chose to take up the challenge of genre film.

A true homage to the erotic fantasy films of the 1970s, and Italian thrillers in particular, Amer explores the feelings and fantasies of Ana, by tracing her bodily journey through three key periods in her life.

Presented at half a dozen festivals, the film unsurprisingly scooped honours at two bastions of fantasy cinema, where the directors had previously shown their shorts, at the Sitges Fantasy Film Festival (Spain), and the Lund Festival in Sweden.

While these prizes seemed to be a logical progression (as the directors made a successful transition to features), the Audience Award at the Montreal New Cinema Festival came as a welcome surprise last weekend, for this is a general interest festival.

Amer was co-produced by France’s Tobina Film. It received backing from the Film Centre of the Belgian French Community (which is quite rare for a genre film), and the CNC.

In France, the film will be released theatrically by Zootrope, and on video by Wild Side. Sold internationally by Coach 14, it has yet to find a Belgian distributor.

(Translated from French)