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Triple Agent
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Eric Rohmer
France | 2004 | 115mins | 35mm | Colour | Subtitled
It's 1936 Paris and the world hurtles towards war.
Fiodor, a former Russian general, has sought exile
with his elegant, Greek-born wife, Arsinoe. This glamorous
couple move in political circles and host cocktail
parties where gossip and political debate occupy the
same space. While Fiodor occasionally disappears on
secretive 'errands', Arsinoe befriends their neighbours,
a couple sympathetic to the rising Popular Front.
As Fiodor's behaviour becomes more mysterious, those
around him realise he is a spy - everyone, that is,
except his wife. But who is he spying for? Is he a
White Russian? A Soviet double agent? A Nazi?
Veteran French auteur Eric Rohmer has crafted an
espionage thriller replete with betrayal, deception
and complicity. As is Rohmer's style, there is plenty
of talk and minimal action. Effectively capturing
a mood of desperation, this master filmmaker elicits
first-class performances from his talented cast as
the layers of deception are slowly peeled away in
this intriguingly sly study in living a lie.
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Yasmin
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Kenny Glenaan
England | 2004 | 87mins | 35mm | Colour
Yasmin is a spirited young woman whose life in the
north of England has become precarious as she attempts
to balance her traditional Indian sub-continental,
Muslim family values and the lifestyle of a modern
European girl, against a backdrop of poverty, high
unemployment and racism. Having rebelled against her
Pakistani culture as a teenager, Yasmin agrees to
marry a cousin 'from home' to please her widowed father.
When the goat herder from a Pakistani village meets
Yasmin, sparks fly. But after 9/11, Yasmin becomes
increasingly ostracised at work. The internment of
Yasmin's husband triggers a new sense of identity
and purpose. Yasmin fights vigor-ously for his release
from a holding centre - and is forced to reevaluate
her faith, her culture, and her relationships.
Despite the serious themes underpinning the story,
this film is a full of Northern wit, irony and juxtapositions.
Much of the humour, as well as the harsh realities
of the story, was developed out of months of research
and workshops with Muslim communities across the North
of England.
Ecumenical Jury Prize, Locarno Film Festival
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