Coxinelle here, Live from Cannes ( or nearly ! ! ) Today, the weather
is hot but a little bit cloudy, though it was very bright yesterday.
Tomorrow (Sunday ) will be the last day of the Festival. So there are
the ultimate nights : the teq party of the Magazine Screen, the gala
evening against AIDS ( very very private ). But all the stars are here
for tomorrow evning when Andie McDowell ( among others)will give the
prizes. But if Cannes it is the stars and the diamonds, it is, before
everything, the movies. So I'll talk to you about

ILLUMINATA

By JOHN TURTURRO

The story is set in the 19th century, but we cannot tell the place :
the characters have got Italian names, some times they use italian
words, but they speak English Well why this confusion ?  Actually we
are seeing the story of a theatrical company : mess and love stories,
hate and jealousy Not a very quiet place. The story begins with TUCCIO
the writer ( TURTURRO) rehearsing with his actress, and director,
RACHEL. But since the first words, there is troubleness between what
is real and what is rehearsing, words from an author. For this
evening, RACHEL presents a play, but TUCCIO would like his to be
performed. The evening comes and others characters have been
introduced : others members of the company ( the " inginue " who is
not that innocent, the main actor [ RUFUS SEWELL who was playing in
BRANAGH's Hamlet and in Dark City ] who is jealous of another actor,
PIERO, two old men, and another actor ) there are also the owners of
the theater, man and wife, and also are introduced an actress of
another company, CELIMENE ( played by SUSAN SARANDON) and a critic (
very very critical ) played by CHRISTOPHER WALKEN who doesn't like at
all Celimene. The play begins, but Piero, whom it is the first time he
plays the main role, faints. The curtain goes down and Tuccio takes
the opportunity : he goes on the stage and begins telling Piero is
dead and talks about his own play : he does so well, that the audience
wants to see it or any other since they paid ! And Tuccio plays is
performed. We find them after, while they are with the critics and the
audience a master piece of hypocrisy ! And Tuccio is in a corner, and
he sees the people in front of him, who don't care of him and suddenly
he sees them ( or rather he imagines ) singing an opera to him in a
crazy and genius scene !

The story goes on The movie is cut in three acts, just like a play. It
tells the difficulty of love, through compromissions and the problems
of money and the time that goes by. But it is over all a game of
mirror : Turturro talks about players, this film was originally a
play, the actors are telling things that, in the beginning, you think
to be their own words, but they are their character's words But don't
think it's a boring movie for intellectual ! It is absolutely funny
with crazy scenes. The actors are just perfect : Turturro has got the
right measure for the complexity of his character ( writer, director
and character and director of the movie itself !), the actress who
plays Rachel is beautiful, Susan Sarandon is more than wonderful and
Walken is fabulous ( and I am not a fan of him he always frightened me
since I saw him as the bad guy in a James Bond when I was a little
girl !  !)

At the end of the screening and during the day in Cannes, the
impressions were very different : some persons were saying that what
Turturro did had yet been done ( especially by French film directors
of the New Wave), some were saying it was a brilliant stylistic
composition, and some like were saying : at least, a quite funny film
in the selection ! And more, it is a very good film with genius actors
and some shots are pure marvels, real paintings ! !

If you like Turturro, you'll love this film, if you like theatre,
you'll love this film, if you like Branagh ( yes !) you'll love this
film, if you like the good productions and the good performances,
you'll love this film !

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