International Film Festival Rotterdam

Last night my friend Heather and I attended the International Film Festival here in Rotterdam.  I have never been to a film festival of any kind so I had no idea what to expect.  It was her idea, and in the beginning I was willing to go but wasn’t entirely on board.   I’m not a big lover of what I like to call artsy fartsy films (Lost in Translation, Dancer in the Dark) and that’s exactly what I imagined I’d be seeing.  I was not convinced.

Heather is usually quite good at getting me out of my comfort zones and dragging me out to do things though, so I agreed to go.  It took us two hours on MSN going through the list of movies to find one we both could agree on.  We knew we wanted something long enough and interesting enough to make us feel like it was €9 well spent.  After narrowing it down to 2-3 strong candidates we settled on a film called Slovenian Girl (originally titled Slovenka).   Dutchies can read the description here.  Here is the English description from the Toronto Film Festival back in September:

Newcomer Nina Ivanišin is probably the closest any actress will ever get to embodying an angel from hell, at least without the stagy makeup. She plays an unlikely prostitute determined to conquer the world, one client at a time. Harbouring an internal darkness she can’t altogether control, her eyelids heavy with sin, Ivanišin’s protagonist looks as though she has been around without ever budging an inch; she is streetwise, yet has little experience outside her immediate environment.

After spending her adolescence in small-town Slovenia, at twenty-three Aleksandra is grateful for the glorious anonymity of Ljubljana, and knows just what to do with it. Styling herself into a mid-level call girl, she sells her soul in exchange for a view from above. Dropping out of society, she barricades herself inside her luxury penthouse and watches the world pass her by. But her isolated existence – English studies during the day, mortgage payments by night – is thrown into chaos when one of her clients, a visiting politician, dies of a heart attack on her watch. All of a sudden, Aleksandra is required to feel things – fear, guilt, loneliness – while the police are on the lookout for Slovenka, her working-girl alias.

Festival veteran Damjan Kozole uses a personal tale to explore larger ideological issues in a striking allegory. Moving from adolescence into adulthood is as hard for Slovenka as it is for Slovenia. What is most amazing about the director’s approach is his ability to allow both his country and his leading lady to maintain their dignity throughout. Aleksandra’s internal independence remains intact even when she caves in, as Kozole steadfastly refuses to force her into high drama. Instead of capitalizing on Ivanišin’s obvious flair for tragedy, he simply steps aside while she takes a breather, ready to follow her in whatever she decides to do next – even if it leads to a happy ending. Now that’s what I call a sacrifice!

Here is a the trailer:

I had no idea what to expect from a Film Festival.  Part of me imagined a bunch of hippies standing around waiting to see their artsy fartsy movies, but another part of me imagined glitz and glamour with people walking red carpets.  All I had to go on was what I saw on the internet really…

It turned out to be such an enjoyable evening!  The city center was buzzing with people and I heard more people passing me by speaking English than on any other day.  The crowd was really diverse and there was a mixture of everything I expected… I got the hippies and the glitz.  There was even a red carpet!  Check it out!

Ok, so beggars can’t be choosers.  I wanted a red carpet and I got one, that’s all that counts.  Although with the green lights they had on, it looks a little more like brown, but you’ll have to take my word for it that it was red.

I stood around for a few minutes waiting for the paparazzi, but they never showed.  Neither did the stars…  I edged closer at one point thinking maybe someone would think that I was the star, but nobody fell for it. Not even Heather took my photo.  Some friend she is!

Where was I?  Oh right, there were all sorts of people there… young, old, flashy, grungy, you name it.  Which was great because no matter who you are, you fit in somewhere.  Even a little camera toting Canadian like me!

There was lots of action happening in the areas where the films were playing.  I had fun trying to imagine who the people were, what they were doing there.  Especially when one young scraggly guy with a backpack leaned over and coughed on me, like… on purpose.  He was walking by and as he passed me, he leaned over and hacked next to my ear and kept walking.  Who knows what crazy, foreign, hippy disease is brewing in me now! -  sigh  –

We arrived early and spent a bit of time walking around taking everything in.   Heather collected every free flyer and postcard she could get her hands on while I tried to snap photos and looked like a complete tourist.  Something about the atmosphere felt really good.  I don’t know if it was just the great feeling of being out and doing something new, or some sort of feel good vybes that are given off at this kind of event, but I was really glad I went.  I hadn’t even seen the film yet!  I was pretty sure that even if it was terrible, I would have enjoyed all the time hanging out before it enough to still make it worth going.

During the 40 minutes before the film started, we sat here outside the theather.  I was beginning to get a little worried about whether we picked a good one or not, as there didn’t seem to be many people waiting.  We joked about us and 15 other people sitting there, but I was a little concerned.  There was no need though, as they all piled in at the last minute and if it wasn’t sold out it was darn close.

Before Slovenian girl started we got an extra 15 minute film called Jade by British Director Daniel Elliott.  I was surprised at how good such a short film could be.  When we were deciding what we wanted to go to, the length played a big part in that.  Neither of us wanted to see something that was only 15 or 30 minutes, mostly because we didn’t know if you paid the same regardless of how long it is.  We wanted to get the most bang for our buck.  Jade proved that you can get quite a lot of bang in a short period of time and made me re-think my film length rules for the future.

Now on to the main event!

Slovenian Girl was fantastic!  Aleksandra, the main character was dark, sarcastic, manipulative, and a little greedy.  She was indifferent when it came to others and had no real regard for anyone else.  She did what she wanted to do and if someone got hurt along the way, that wasn’t her problem.  While there were the odd glimpses of vulnerability, they were quickly tucked aside as she regained her chilly demeanor.   Still though, as a member of the audience I found myself feeling an odd sort of affection towards her.  The relationship between Aleksandra and her father was touching.  His affection for her and how important she was in his life outweighed anything bad she could have done.  So much so that when faced with it he chose not to believe it even though the evidence of it was all around him.

I don’t remember a film where the main character had so few redeemable qualities yet I still felt a connection to them.  Perhaps it was meant to touch the darker side in all of us, or make us feel protective towards her.  Whatever the purpose was, it definitely worked on me.  Nina Ivanišin played the part perfectly.

Akelsandra also wasn’t what you imagine a call girl to be.  She didn’t smile to please anyone and didn’t show up in stockings and a push up bra.  She was sullen and closed off, showing up in jeans and chucks and not pretending for anyone.  She was there for a purpose and that was it.   That was part of the beauty of it though because Nina Ivanišin is gorgeous in a rather unconventional sort of way, so even in her boyish clothes there was still something appealing about her.

I have to admit that I didn’t really understand all of the political undertones in the movie, but even so, I don’t feel like I missed out at all.

The ending was one of my favorite parts of the film.  Usually I am quite happy to have things wrapped up nicely so I know what happens, and this is one time that an open ending didn’t really bother me.   Watching Aleksandra standing outside a club, deep in though singing along with “Bobby Brown Goes Down” by Frank Zappa, which seem sort of appropriate with phrases like … I’m a sexual spastic and I’ll do anything to get ahead.  It leaves everything open to your imagination.  Does she return to Ljubljana and her risky lifestyle or does she give it all up and move back to her hometown?

I do hope that someone recognizes Nina Ivanišin for her beauty and talent soon, and brings her to Hollywood… because I’d love to see her in something again and see what else she is capable of.

So that was my first experience with a film festival.  I was skeptical but in the end I truly enjoyed myself and I’ll definitely be visiting again next year!