Reporting on the Cannes premiere of James Gray’s The Immigrant, Keith Uhlich of Time Out New York wrote, “Gray prefers a straight A to B narrative classicism that seems out of vogue, at least as far as the current American cinema is concerned, in its slow-build patience and delicacy.” Gray, a writer-director based in the New York, would probably agree with that assessment. In his interviews and DVD commentaries, Gray cites Greek tragedy, French realist painting, Dostoevsky novels, and verismo Italian operas of the late 19th century as perennial sources of inspiration. His first four films may take place in the present or near present, but they rarely feel like contemporary films, suggesting instead what 19th- or early-20th-century artists might make of life today.
The 49th Chicago International Film Festival
Director spotlights
Italian horror master Dario Argento presents Dracula 3D in person.
Chicago native John McNaughton‘s The Harvest is the director’s first theatrical feature in over a decade.
Tsai Ming-liang‘s Stray Dogs follows in the tradition of Chaplin and Ozu.
