Focusing on socially critical cinema, the 2019 Munich Film Festival shows the consequences of globalization — in both fictional and documentary films. But the directors also seek to entertain.
Image: FILMFEST MÜNCHEN
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Highlights from the 37th Munich Film Festival
Premieres, stars and films from all over the world — the Munich Film Festival offers highlights galore. Here's a peek at the program, big-name films and discoveries on the fringe, famous actors and directors.
Image: FILMFEST MÜNCHEN 2019
Opening film: 'The Art of Self-Defense'
What makes a real man? This is the question "The Art of Self-Defense" ironically asks at the beginning of the Munich Film Festival. Hollywood star Jesse Eisenberg (right) is trying to increase his testosterone level at a karate club. But will it work? Director Riley Stearns provides some surprising answers. The festival opens its program this year with a generous dose of black humor.
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International cinema premieres: "Bacurau" from Brazil
With the cinema landscape facing hurdles such as US blockbusters, Netflix and the death of cinemas and theaters, film festivals present the treasures of cinema, somewhat like an exhibition at a museum. A film like "Bacurau," which was awarded the Jury Prize in Cannes, celebrates its German premiere in Munich. Whether the film will then make the leap into movie theaters is uncertain.
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Documentaries from all over the world: "Gaza"
A good festival always provides viewers with a glimpse into new developments. As a consequence of globalization, more and more co-productions are clearly emerging worldwide — so the Munich Festival added a new category in 2019: "CineCoPro." Shown this year is the documentary "Gaza," a German-Irish-Canadian-British production.
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International young directors: 'Angelo'
In the "CineVision" category, organizers look at new talents from all over. What questions are asked by the next generation of directors? Often the questions focus on the role of family, tradition and loss of control. One example is "Angelo" by Austrian film maker Markus Schleinzer, who uses an authentic story to help trace the fate of a young slave in Europe at the beginning of the 18th century.
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Showcase of German Cinema: 'Golden Twenties'
Second only to the Berlinale, the Munich Film Festival is an important showcase of German film. In the "New German Cinema" section this year, "Golden Twenties" with German actress Henriette Confurius will face the competition. Director and script writer Sophie Kluge created a sensitive film about a young woman searching for her place in life.
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'Play:' What is real life?
In recent years, the sharp boundaries between cinema, television and the offerings of streaming providers have blurred. The Munich Film Festival has long been presenting quality television and situating it in the "Netflix" age. The category "Neues Deutsches Fernsehen" (New German Television) presents the film "Play:" director Philip Koch shows a young woman retreating into the virtual world.
Image: Filmfest München 2019/Alexander Fischerkoesen
Bauhaus anniversary: 'A New Era'
Festivals nowadays have special sections devoted to series. Marking this year's Bauhaus anniversary, the festival presents the premiere of the six-part series "'A New Era." Set in 1963, the episodes revolve around the 80-year-old Walter Gropius, who faces accusations by a young journalist of having oppressed women. The film stars Anna Maria Mühe (shown here), August Diehl and Trine Dyrholm.
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CineMerit Award I: Antonio Banderas
Every festival likes to present celebrities and will often have honorary awards for the respective star's life's work. In 2019, the Munich Film Festival will be handing out two "CineMerit" awards. One goes to Spanish actor Antonio Banderas. The festival will be showing his new film, Pedro Almodovar's "Pain and Glory" as well as an old Banderas classic, "The Mask of Zorro."
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CineMerit II: Ralph Fiennes
The second honorary award goes to British actor Ralph Fiennes. In this case, it is not all about his merits as an actor, but also about the premiere of the third film directed by Fiennes, "Nurejev - The White Crow." It focuses on an episode from the life of Soviet ballet star Rudolf Nurejev (portrayed in the film by Oleg Ivenko) during the Cold War.
Image: FILMFEST MÜNCHEN 2019/Jessica Forde
Retrospective: Bong Joon Ho
The festival's 2019 retrospective is dedicated to South Korean director Bong Joon Ho. South Korean cinema is currently on an upswing, and several directors have gained international fame. In May, Bong Joon Ho won the "Palme D'Or" in Cannes for his new film "Parasite."
Image: 2019 CJ ENM Corporation, Barunson E&A
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The world is full of catastrophes. At least that's the impression one can get from the daily news on the TV or online. So is the world getting worse? Statistically that would be hard to demonstrate. Each individual's perceived situation is of course completely different. The films at the 37th Munich Film Festival (27 June-6 July) reflect a reality that people everywhere experience every day.
"The power of reality" is the motto of this year's Munich Film Festival. Stories and fiction are a convenient way to escape our complex and fast-paced world, said festival director Diana Iljine shortly before it began. But escapism is just one issue at the festival. The stories also reflect reality and show alternative ways of life, said Iljine.
Social commentary or not, the festival also seeks to entertain with films like "Keep Surfing"Image: Filmfest München 2019
A big film festival like this has something for everyone. Some 180 new films from 62 countries will be shown in the Bavarian capital Munich in the coming days. Nearly 50 of them are world premieres, the rest — apart from retrospectives and tributes — are being screened for the first time in Germany.
New inspiration from South Korea
Many films in the international section deal with the growing differences between rich and poor in some regions of the world. Other major issues include everyday racism, disadvantaged population groups and escape and migration.
Films like "CRSHD" examine how young people use the social mediaImage: Filmfest München 2019
A good example of the balancing act between social criticism and entertainment is this year's retrospective, which focuses on Bong Joon Ho of South Korea, winner of the 2019 Golden Palm in Cannes. His films explore the crevasses of modern society in the filmmaker's home country but are presented in exciting, entertaining and surprising ways.
Employing genre film techniques, Bong Joon Ho takes a look at society, here in "Memories of a Murder" Image: Filmfest München 2019
The second retrospective of this year's festival examines a director who does not adhere to conventional genre categories. Mads Brügger of Denmark is often compared to the American director Michael Moore and to Sacha Baron Cohen, another provocateur. Brügger is also a journalist and the program director of a radio station.
In his works, Brügger embarks on journalistic journeys — often under a false name and with a foreign identity — which he captures with his camera. In 2004 he was on the road in the US election campaign ("Danes for Bush"), has traveled in highly restricted North Korea ("Red Chapel"), done research on the worldwide diamond trade ("The Ambassador") and last year roamed China for the semi-documentary comedy "The Saint Bernard Syndicate." In his new film "Cold Case Hammerskjöld," he deeply probes the still unsolved case of UN Secretary General Dag Hammerskjöld, who died in a plane crash in 1961.
While the Munich Film Festival enables visitors to drift between the many program categories with plenty of films to choose from, they will have to ask the inevitable question: "How should I see it all?" With the festival only being 10 days long, punters can only take in a fraction of what's on offer.
In "The Ambassador," Mads Brügger addresses the issue of trade in "blood diamonds" Image: FILMFEST MÜNCHEN 2019
Is it better to concentrate on the international film scene, offered in five large categories only in Munich? Or is it better to concentrate on new German cinema releases? Or perhaps one might want to take in one of the many discussion rounds exploring the changing film market in 2019. "Euroflix? On the way to strong (T)VOD (transactional video on demand) providers in Europe" discusses the question of whether or not it should be possible to set up a European player to compete with Netflix, Amazon and Co.
Finally, on three festival days the "Virtual Worlds" section presents a range of innovative virtual reality experiments from all over the world and a glimpse at how the medium may be used in the future.
