Breathing And Complete Satisfaction (December 2001) Do you need to pull out your Soviet history books to understand the work of André Tarkovsky (1932 - 1986) or can you just let your mystical mind go along its merry way? André Tarkovsky, filmmaker and film mystic, was transported to the world of "others" some 15 years ago and that is sufficient reason to clean up the copies and reassess both the man and his work. A.T. will be having his work screened at the Amsterdam Filmmuseum (2 performances a day) from December 6th 2001 through 30 January 2002, which means that it could prove to be a very interesting Christmas for some and a rebirth for others with coming of the New Year. Alongside the man's own films, there will be a selection of films about him and his work: Donatella Baglivo's (1984) "Un Poeta nel Cinema: Andrei Tarkovsky", Alexander Sokoerov's (1987) "Moscow Elegy", Michal Leszczylowski's "Regi - Andrei Tarkowsky" (1988), and, from the Dutch connection, Jurriën Rood's & Leo de Boer's "The Way to Bresson" (1984) as well as a piece by that magnificent Frenchman Chris Marker "One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich" (2001). (During approximately the same time period -i.e. dec-jan-, this film program will be screened in eighteen cinemas throughout Holland). Also >>> for your edification>>> A thoroughgoing website on Tarkovsky can be found at: www.nostalghia.com. That should keep you philosophically busy through the new age. A full listing of the films to be screened at the Netherlands Filmmuseum is available at: www.filmmuseum.nl. Dreams and memories, past and present together. It's time to get down for all you metaphysical guys and gals! The name of Joris Ivens conjures up some of the most artistically refined works from Dutch cinema in the 20th century. Ivens, who died in 1990, left an impressive archive behind, which consists of more than two hundred thousand pieces (approximately seventy chunky feet of documentation), including eleven thousand photographs and two hundred posters. On June 4th, 1964, Ivens allowed his archive of written documents to be stored at the Netherlands Filmmuseum, which was headed at that time by Jan de Vaal, with the stipulation that the "Joris Ivens Archive" be kept separately from the remainder of the Filmmuseum collections. After making this agreement, additional pieces were added to this collection throughout the years, without particular attention being paid to whether they should be filed as new additions to the Ivens (heirs') archives, to the Netherlands Filmmuseum collection, or stored and maintained for use by third parties. It seems that this (confusing) dispute has finally been resolved on November 30th between Joris Ivens' widow, Marceline Loridan, in her role as Chairman of the Board for the European Joris Ivens Foundation (ESJI) and head of the Netherlands Filmmuseum Rien Hagen, who have forwarded a letter to Secretary of Culture Rick van der Ploeg announcing that the "archive question" has "been settled in a manner to the complete satisfaction of all parties involved". The "Joris Ivens-archive" can nowadays be found in the director's birthplace, Nijmegen. This also heralds the beginning of a new collaboration between the ESJI and the Netherlands Filmmuseum as far as Ivens' work is concerned. A number of international retrospectives are already in the works and a DVD box will be appearing shortly. Sonic sounds will be filling the air once again this year at "Sonic Acts" in the Paradiso, Amsterdam, on the 6th and 7th of December. Included among the numerous performances are works by Taco Stold, Chris speed, Kent Clelland, and Richard Devine. The Conference will be opened by Dutch Minister of Culture Rick van der Ploeg and two full days will titillate your eardrums and vibrate your orifices. Check it out at: www.sonicacts.com. The Royal Academy of Arts in the Hague will be presenting their version on December 10th. Tommy, can you hear me? "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones" is due for release in Holland (as well as the rest of the world) on May 17th. Check out: www.starwars.com for some "Breathing". Know what I mean? Is anybody out there getting disturbed about the turn toward censorship that our times are once again taking? In England they talk about "classification" instead of censorship and in Holland they've installed a new series of visual emblems (referred to as "Kijkwijzer") that alert people to categories (e.g. - When there's a spider it's a scary movie). No real problem at present, but such activities could portend a sad future if things are taken one step too far. In the meantime, relax and take a look at a website that hasn't been removed from our eyes: members.tripod.com/~remlee/nny.html. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Steven Spielberg's "E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial", Universal Studios President and Chief Operating Officer Ron Meyer has launched a 13-month celebration. Having begun in November and running through the end of next year "E.T." will remain an integral part of Universal's image. In other words, it will be included in all aspects of the corporate identity program . The March 2002 worldwide release of "E.T." will feature never-before-seen footage as well as state-of-the-art computer-generated enhancements and a digitally remixed score by award-winning composer John Williams. Director S.S. says, "E.T. is my most personal film. It's a wonderful opportunity to bring the film to a new generation of moviegoers, and I'm honored that Universal takes so much pride in the picture". The 20th anniversary celebration began November 21st (with the appearance of the newly created animated Universal Studios logo) and will run through the end of 2002. During this time, the image of E.T. will be an integral part of Universal's identity and business activities, being featured in all aspects, including film, television, home entertainment, theme parks, music, consumer products, publishing and online products. "Crossroads", the new film starring teenage darling Britney Spears, is due to spread itself across the Lowland screens next March. And so begins the search in Holland this month for a duplicate darling: "Do you look-a-like Britney?" Those interested in winning prizes can enter with hopes and dreams as well as a chance of meeting the real-girl herself next March (when she comes to Amsterdam for promotion of the film) at: www.britneysmovie.nl. Clone, anyone? The third edition of the "Day of the Dutch Film" will take place on January 17th at the Grand Theatre in Amersfoort, Holland. Schools throughout the country will have the chance to view screenings of such recent Dutch films and documentaries as "The Discovery of Heaven", "Iedereen beroemd", "Zusje" en "De grot". Such actors, writers, and directors as Kim van Kooten, Ronald Giphart, Johanna ter Steege and Robert Jan Westdijk will introduce films. Demonstrations about stuntwork, special FX, the making of commercials, animation, and acting as well as workshops are among the activities taking place in the city. More information available at: www.dag-van-de-nederlandse-film.nl. Word has it that Alejandro Amenábar is delighted with the result of the English language version (directed by Cameron Crowe) of his film "Abre Los Ojos" which stars Tom Cruise and is called "Vanilla Sky". In Amenábar's own words: "I think that I can say that, for me, the projects are like two very special brothers. They have the same concerns, but their personalities are quite different. In other words, they sing the same song but with quite different voices: one likes opera and the other likes rock and roll". Sounds like music to our ears. Take a Cruise (or a Cruz) to the cinema. © 1994-2006 The Green Hartnett