Several highly anticipated films are already set to bow at the Rome Film Festival when November rolls around. We already know we can expect to see Roman Coppola’s “A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III,” the Walter Hill-directed comeback vehicle with Sylvester Stallone's “Bullet to the Head,” and maybe even a surprise bit of Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained” may be in order. Still, there’s a quieter side to the festival that isn’t all debuts of big Hollywood films, and that’s where Marjane Satrapi’s “Gang of the Jotas” fits in.
The trailer for the “Persepolis” writer-director’s latest film will apparently offer “a wacky take on the famous suitcase mixup at the airport.” The story centers on Nils and Didier as they arrive in the south of Spain to play in a badminton tournament, where a manipulative mystery woman (Satrapi) is also en route to settle her score with the Spanish mafia. When they meet and exchange suitcases, all three of their lives take a dramatic turn, which involves Nils and Didier becoming her sidekicks. The trailer certainly indicated that after “Persepolis” and “Chicken with Plums,” the filmmaker is certainly in fine form. The dark humor present in the former animated film seems to permeate throughout this trailer as well, with murder and suspenseful thrills all being delivered with a bit of a smirk.
This latest film certainly came as a surprise to many, especially since most have had their attention towards her gestating project, “The Voices,” which just yesterday we learned may bag Ryan Reynolds in a lead role. Still, it’s nice to see the filmmaker stepping out from behind the camera (she did some acting in 2009’s “The French Kissers”), and you can check out both her acting and directing chops in the trailer below. (embed via The Film Stage)
I wish she'd go back to animation. There needs to be more mature-natured, female-driven cartoons.
She really does an amazing eye for beautiful images cleverly crafted that also SERVE the film & story. their not just for the sake of "looking pretty". She really is quite brilliant & meticulous in what every frame every angle she wants. However, I dunno about this plot, not sure what audience it can find which is kind of a bummer b/c it looks like it has potential….. :/