Source: Associated Press (AP)
At 50, Berlin Film Festival Still Searching For Hollywood Respect
Despite a flashy new setting, the Berlin International Film Festival is still struggling to be taken seriously by Hollywood as it celebrates its 50th anniversary this year: Organizers arenít even sure if one of the two stars they're paying homage to, Robert De Niro, will show up. The festival, known as the Berlinale, opens Wednesday in brand-new theatres with the world premiere of local boy Wim Wendersí independent flick, ""The Million Dollar Hotel,"" starring Mel Gibson (whose attendance, by the way, was also unconfirmed). Unlike the glitzier festival in Cannes or the older one in Venice, where films like ""Fight Club"" and ""Cradle Will Rock"" were seen last year for the first time anywhere, none of the big-budget U.S. movies competing for Berlin's Golden Bear statue are world premieres. Hollywoodís Berlin offerings, ""The Talented Mr. Ripley,"" ""The Beach,"" ""The Hurricane,"" ""Magnolia,"" ""Man on the Moon"" and ""Any Given Sunday"" have all already opened in the United States. The German governments culture czar, Michael Naumann, who last year urged organizers to find ways to raise the festivals international profile, said he would have liked to see Hollywood save at least one premiere for Berlin. ""That would have been my dream,"" he told journalists Tuesday. But he said ""market conditions in the United States seem to make it impossible."" Part of the problem is timing: To be eligible for an Academy AwardÆ nomination, which get announced in Hollywood at the same time the festival is running, the movie has to have been shown in U.S. theatres the previous year. Anyone who debuts a film in Berlin, then, has to wait almost a year before the next nominations come around, and risk fading from memory. Cannes is in May and Venice in September, but even they don't win them all: Cannes was turned down when it asked to showcase last summer's hot films, ""Eyes Wide Shut"" and the new ""Star Wars."" Instead, Hollywood tends to use festivals like the Berlinale as a springboard for the European launch of its winter films, bringing in its stars to generate publicity before the films hit the box office. Leonardo DiCaprio (""The Beach"") and Gwyneth Paltrow (""The Talented Mr. Ripley"") are among those definitely coming to Berlin this year. Otherwise, it can be hard to entice Hollywoodís A-list to leave sunny California in February for the cold, gray weather of northern Europe. De Niro, whoís been to Berlin three times when he had a new film to promote, has yet to commit this year, even though the festival is honoring him with a retrospective. By contrast, French star Jeanne Moreau, who's also receiving a special tribute, is planning on staying for a whole week, organizers say. Festival boss Moritz de Hadeln says the star quotient doesn't concern him. ""The films are coming, and that's the most important thing, he said at a recent news conference."" He stressed the festivalsí ""European touch this year, with premieres from France, Italy, Russia, Turkey, Spainís Catalonia region and even Serbia among the 21 in competition."" With the 10th anniversary of German unification coming up this fall, new offerings from Oscar-winning German directors Volker Schloendorff (""The Tin Drum"") and Pepe Danquart (""Black Rider"") both deal with the psychological trauma of rejoining east and west. Polish director Andrzej Wajda, whoís getting a lifetime achievement award at the Academy AwardsÆ this year, is on the jury, chaired by Chinese star Gong Li. Even Naumann has backed away from his earlier criticism, declining to compare this yearís Berlinale with its competitors. ""Berlin will stay Berlin, he said."" Nor would he venture a guess as to whether the new location, the glitzy, just-opened Potsdamer Platz complex built on what used to be the no-mans land of the Berlin Wall, would usher in a glamorous new era for the Berlinale. So far, the only thing the new location means for sure is that staging the festival is not getting any cheaper, said Naumann, who has been criticized by organizers for not coming up with enough state support. ""Whether it will be better depends on the choices of the jurors,"" Naumann added.