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Rotterdam 2004

The Rotterdam Film Festival is a meeting point for film critics. It's a good place not only to see an interesting selection of recent world cinema and to become acquainted with newest tendencies in independent film making. It's also a good place to debate cinema, the importance of festivals, the role of critics.

The Dutch magazine "De Filmkrant" asked critics to contribute to its daily festival publication "De Filmkrant in Rotterdam", with texts on different aspects of cinema. In cooperation with our Dutch colleagues, we're reprinting the texts.

Hans Beerekamp writes a letter to Simon Field, the retiring fest director.
Adrian Martin undertakes a tour of world cultures, linking Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" to the Rotterdam retrospective dedicated to Raul Ruiz.
Jonathan Rosenbaum pleads for one of the most controversial films, Gus Van Sant's "Elephant" and compares it to Bela Tarr's Satantango.
Mark Peranson describes his excitement for the Rotterdam Film Festival and the festival's influence on his career.
Hassouna Mansouri introduces African cinema
Quintin writes on Hou Hsiao-hsien, national cinema, his dislike of an Argentinean Amélie and perspecitves of filmmaking in Argentina.

Young Critics. The festival invited three young critics ("trainees") to attend the event, to come into contact with the world of festivals, to see a selection of world cinema, to meet filmmakers — and to write on the spot about their impressions.
Matthieu Darras writes on "Diversity vs. Déjà Vu": "It happens quite often that a festival competition conjures up, as if by magic, one or more recurrent themes that flow from one film to the other."
Zhang Ya-xuan introduces to Chinese Films presented at the Festival.
Paolo Bertolin writes on "Bodies: Rest And Motion". "Many of the films that stroke me the most in Rotterdam, either in positive or negative terms, a recurring, though differently declined presence keeps on returning to my mind: human body".

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