The Man from London
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Man from London | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Béla Tarr |
| Produced by | Humbert Balsan Christoph Hahnheiser Christoph Meyer-Wiel Paul Saadoun Gábor Téni |
| Written by | Georges Simenon (novel) Béla Tarr László Krasznahorkai |
| Starring | Tilda Swinton Miroslav Krobot Leah Williams Janos Derzsi Istvan Lenart |
| Music by | Mihály Vig |
| Cinematography | Fred Kelemen |
| Editing by | Ágnes Hranitzky |
| Release date(s) | Cannes Film Festival: May 23, 2007 Toronto International Film Festival: September 7, 2007 New York Film Festival: September 30, 2007 |
| Running time | 132 min. |
| Country | Hungary France Germany |
| Language | Hungarian |
| IMDb profile | |
The Man From London (Hungarian: A Londoni férfi) is a 2007 drama film by Hungarian director Béla Tarr. It is based on the French-language novel by prolific Belgian writer Georges Simenon. It was adapted by Tarr himself and his collaborator-friend László Krasznahorkai. The film’s production was a journey in and of itself similar to a noir story, with threats to shut down the production, lack of financing, and ultimately a return to work. The international feature celebrated its premiere in the Competition of the Cannes Film Festival 2007.
The film is described as a mystery with “deeply existential” hues.[1] It stars Tilda Swinton opposite Czech actor Miroslav Krobot. The international ensemble cast also features British actress Leah Williams, and Hungarian actors Janos Derzsi and Istvan Lenart.[2]
German director and cinematographer Fred Kelemen is the Director of Photography.
Contents |
[edit] Festivals
The film was featured in the following festivals:
- Toronto International Film Festival 2007
- New York Film Festival 2007
- Cannes Film Festival 2007 (in competition).[3]
[edit] Financial problems
The production is already notorious among fans of international cinema. It all began in February 2005, when the film’s producer Humbert Balsan committed suicide on 10 February. Tarr says he received word of his producer’s death after already shooting two days at Corsica.[2]
This is from an already-quoted interview:
- Upon the French producer's death, French bank Coficine froze the disbursement.
- Using the project's Hungarian funds, plus extra support from Eurimages and ARTE,
- Tarr shot for nine days on the sets he had built for $2.3m (€2m.)
- Tarr returned to Hungary to reorganise. He said was obliged to strike a new deal with Coficine,
- which held all rights to the film via its contract with Balsan's company, Ognon Pictures.
- Tarr has cut the project's budget, originally $5.9m (€5m), by $838,494 (€700,000)
- and cut the number of shooting days.[2]
For some time, production remained in a state of uncertainty[4] until word broke in late 2005 that Tarr had secured financing, which had now become more international than ever, and would soon resume shooting. Indeed, shooting did restart, according to sources, in March.[1] [2].
Moreover, the following letter by director Béla Tarr and producer Gábor Téni, dated February 6, 2006, sheds light to the state of production, and its countless obstacles, in the most comprehensive way.
The letter in English at filmunio.hu
[edit] References
- ^ a b <http://www.darkhorizons.com/news05/constan2.php — A Dark Horizons Interview with Tilda Swinton
- ^ a b c d <http://www.facets.org/Images/cache/wh_11article_20060208092323__0.html — Hungarian director Béla Tarr speaks to journalists
- ^ Festival de Cannes : Official Selection 2007
- ^ <http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117919818?categoryid=13&cs=1 — A Variety Article, "Man" overboard in Corsica
[edit] External links
 |
This 2000s drama film-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
