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PHOTO: BHAGYA PRAKASH K.

KALEDIOSCOPE There was a festive mood at the venue with young hopefuls scampering from screen to screen

Film festivals are strictly for junkies who crave their annual fix. You eat, sleep, talk, smoke and drink cinema. It's like a family function. There are those who use terms like existentialism (yes they still do) and those who look for meanings the director never meant to convey. There are still the stereotypes, clothes, language and everything else. There are also the young hopefuls scampering from screen to screen not wanting to miss a single scene. It's a window to a world of varied cultures, different dialects and a maze of varied moods. The one thing you realise is that even though there is a kaleidoscope of cultures, emotions are the same whichever corner of the world you inhabit.

"When You Come Down From Heaven" is like a typical Indian film. It's about an upright, small town guy coming to the big bad city to supplement his mother's resources. He's hired by the Town Hall to pick up the homeless and abandon them in the wilderness. He makes friends with a lovable vagabond and his moral resolve to revolt is strengthened when his pal gets the same treatment. He's helped by a female cub reporter out to prove herself.

The film plods along predictably with a few interesting scenes. The acting is above average with the guy who plays the vagabond stealing the scene. He reminds you of the great Gerard Depardieu.

"Zim And Co." is about a hyperactive kid who works in the market and also plays the guitar in a band at night whose life changes thanks to a freak accident. He's given an ultimatum by the cops to get a regular job or spend time in the slammer. He finds a job but needs a car. He's helped by his childhood pals but is conned by a fake car dealer. Now the kid is caught between taking the right path and the wrong.

This film is an interesting look at relationships be it mother and son or between friends. The pace is not soporific and the acting is excellent.

The one thing our filmmakers have to learn is the judicious use of background score which is common in all the films being shown.

"Flanders" directed by Bruno Dumont is brilliant. A farm hand in the interiors of France who treats his girlfriend as just an object for sex triggers off negative emotions in her due to his inability to express himself emotionally. She starts sleeping with any man in sight and gets pregnant when he's away at war.

The director uses brutal war scenes to show the mental bruises it can leave. The dichotomy between the verdant, serene farm and the heartless violence that's war is stark.

The shot taking is brilliant be it the endless greenery covered with snow or the tough dusty terrain in which the war is being fought.

The violence is graphic and in your and show the futility of all the bloodshed. It effectively shows how war turns man into a mindless killer.

Adeliede Leroux gives a standout performance as the female protagonist.

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