Political? The Berlin Film Festival?

That’s all we’ve ever been. It’s never been about film.

But we’re not just Crappy-Movies-R-Us anymore. Now we’re openly anti-Israeli. Wait. We’ve always been openly anti-Israel. But now we’re openly openly anti-Israeli.

Germany launches probe over Berlin film festival anti-Israel row – German officials will investigate how Berlin film festival winners were able to make “one-sided” comments condemning Israel’s war in Gaza at the event’s finale, a government spokeswoman says.

At Saturday’s awards ceremony, several winners were accused of making biased remarks on stage in relation to Israel’s war against Hamas, which began after the October 7 assault by the terror group that killed some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw 253 taken hostage.

US filmmaker Ben Russell, wearing a Palestinian scarf, accused Israel of committing “genocide.”

“Off to a political start?”

There seems to be some misunderstanding here. The Berlin Film Festival has never not gotten off to a political start.

It moves on from there to a politcal midway point and then to a political end, for some political end, politically. It’s never been any different. That’s why the films they show here are always so crappy.

Berlin Film Festival Off to a Political Start as Three Protests Precede Opening Ceremony – After kicking off with a feisty press conference, the Berlin Film Festival got even more political as three groups of protesters descended on Potsdamer Platz before the start of opening night festivities.

Mud Metal

It’s one of the heaviest metals there are. Even though it’s mud.

Wow. I heard a lot of these fans were wondering why their coffee tasted so muddy. Turns out it was freshly ground… A lot of them used to be addicted to mud wrestling, I’m told. But they’ve been clean now for years… Also heard about this big male cow that got stuck in mud near the stage. Terra-bull… I’ll be here all week, folks.

Germany’s Wacken metal festival halts admissions after persistent rain turns site to mud – The Wacken Open Air heavy metal festival in northern Germany is opening on Wednesday with a reduced audience after persistent rain turned the grounds to mud and forced organizers to order a halt to all new arrivals.

Organizers of the famed music festival in the village of Wacken, in a rural area northwest of Hamburg, had already told fans on Tuesday that no more cars and trucks could be admitted to the site because camping areas, the grounds and access roads were in poor condition because of heavy rain in recent days, and more was expected.

What To Expect?

The same pointed political messages, the same leftist championing of disturbing themes, the same provocative (yawn) political exhibitionism from woke virtue signaling political stooges everywhere. What to expect? The same procedure as every year, James.

Berlinale: What to expect at the 2023 Berlin film festival – A look at the highlights of the Berlinale, from the stars on the red carpet to the competition for the Golden and Silver Bears, and the festival’s focus on Ukraine and Iran...

The festival publishes detailed statistics related to gender diversity. Only six films in the competition are directed by women; but taken together, 38.7% of the current productions are directed by women, and 4% of them by non-binary filmmakers.

While there are not any African titles in the main competition, sections such as Panorama and Forum feature several works from the continent.

Sean Penn’s Ukraine Doc Won’t Be Competing!

It’s that good. Just like the Berlin International Film Festival itself. They’re both so good they’re for the greater good.

Too bad their films are always so no good.

The Berlin International Film Festival unveiled the competition lineup for its 2023 edition on Monday morning, naming the 18 movies that will compete for the coveted Gold and Silver Bears at the 73rd Berlinale…

Berlin 2023, taking place a year after Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion, will have a major focus on Ukraine. Even the festival’s official pin will be in the Ukraine colors of blue and yellow…

In a late addition, Superpower, Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufman’s documentary on Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Russian invasion of the country and the ongoing war, will have its world premiere in Berlin’s out-of-competition Berlinale Special section.

That Photo Says It All

Berlinale

About this year’s Berlin Film Festival, I mean. Or Berlinale, if your prefer.

A dud line-up… A competition film lasting eight hours… The Berlin competition DOES tend to be serious… Misguided inclusions… Films about German characters played by English actors who speak in English but with German accents… Meryl Streep… Disappointment… Acute no-frills psychological realism… An extraordinary docudrama of sorts… More Meryl Streep… More Disappointment… George Clooney.”

Ya’ll come back now next year! Ya hear?

 

Meryl Streep Wants More Inclusion

As Berlin Film Festival Jury head, that is. In industry and politics, I mean. And the Berlinale is just the place to, uh, want that kind of thing, or something.

Meryl Streep

You know, more women, more people of non-white color, more transgender cats and dogs, more environmentally friendly refrigerators, stuff like that needs more inclusion. Who would disagree? Who even could? And we’re talking inclusion as in diversity here, people. NOT assimilation.

Sadly, things that are definitely not included in the inclusion here – here at the Berlin Film Festival, I mean, the Berlinale, that is, the reason why this lady from Hollywood is here in the first place – are films that anybody/anything in his/her/its right mind might ever possibly want to see.

“The thing I’ve noticed from my different roles is there is a core of humanity that travels right through every culture. And, after all, we’re all from Africa, originally. We’re all Berliners. We’re all Africans, really.”

A star is born

Actually, it’ll end up being around forty or so later this year. Not terribly original, the idea, but still.

Who needs Hollywood, huh? Marlene Dietrich will be the very first US-Amerikanerin star ever to be immortalised on the streets of her home town on a brand new “Walk of Fame” which will be unveiled during the Berlin film festival this coming week.

Ten stars will be awarded a star each year during the festival festivities from here on out, all with a link to Hollywood, I mean German culture.

Like walk the talk already.