27/05/2009

Having already distributed 10 of UK director Ken Loach’s films since 1993, Diaphana is today releasing a 339-print run of Looking for Eric [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cannes 2009
Ken Loach
interview: Steve Evets - actor
film profile], which won acclaim in competition at the recent Cannes Film Festival.

Co-produced by the UK and France (Why Not Productions, France 2 Cinéma), the feature stars Steve Evets and Eric Cantona. Diaphana is hoping this acting duo will enable it to recapture its record for a Loach film: 915,000 admissions in 2006 for Palme d’Or-winner The Wind that Shakes the Barley [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ken Loach
interview: Rebecca O’Brien
film profile].

Another UK production hits screens this Wednesday: Richard Eyre’s The Other Man [+see also:
trailer
film profile], starring Liam Neeson and Spanish actor Antonio Banderas. Released by Pretty Pictures, the film opened the latest San Sebastian Film Festival.

Two French productions complete the line-up of European releases. StudioCanal is launching Blame It On Mum [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (see news) by Cécile Telerman, who enjoyed success with her debut feature Thirty-Five Something [+see also:
trailer
interview: Cécile Telerman
film profile] (1.44m admissions in 2005). This time, the director treats viewers to a family comedy drama starring Mathilde Seigner, Olivier Marchal, Charlotte Rampling, Pascal Elbé, Patrick Chesnais and Sophie Cattani.

Produced by La Mouche du Coche, the €9.03m film received co-production support from Films de la Greluche, TF1 Films Production and StudioCanal, as well as pre-sales from Canal + and Ciné Cinéma.

Rezo Films is launching Abbas Fahdel’s Dawn of the World [+see also:
trailer
film profile], featuring Shooting Star 2009 Hafsia Herzi (see interview) and Hiam Abbas. The €1.45m film was 80% financed by France (ADR Productions) and 20% by Germany, with backing from Eurimages and Canal +.

At the box office, Niels Arden Oplev’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Niels Arden Oplev
interview: Søren Stærmose
film profile] has attracted 670,000 viewers in 12 days (UGC Distribution on 554 screens) and Pedro Almodóvar’s Broken Embraces [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
film profile] has drawn 247,000 cinemagoers in five days (Pathé Distribution on 288 screens). Meanwhile, Richard Curtis’ The Boat That Rocked [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (StudioCanal) has garnered 435,000 admissions in almost three weeks on release and Eric Lavaine’s French comedy Incognito [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (Pathé Distribution) has reached 1.09m in almost four weeks.

(Translated from French)