This week Naomi Watts and Sean Penn amp up the intensity in Fair Game (Saturday 8th September, 8.30pm), a political thriller based on the true story of CIA agent Valerie Plame and her diplomat husband Joseph Wilson.
This week Naomi Watts and Sean Penn amp up the intensity in Fair Game (Saturday 8th September, 8.30pm), a political thriller based on the true story of CIA agent Valerie Plame and her diplomat husband Joseph Wilson.
All I knew about this scandalous story was what I’d read in Vanity Fair articles, and it seems Fair Game does a good job explaining how, in the lead up to the Iraq War, this husband and wife independently came to the conclusion that Iraq had no active nuclear weapons program.
This information wasn’t well received by those who read the evidence differently. Wilson voiced his opinion in the New York Times and soon after Valerie Plame’s top secret identity is leaked by a government employee to a high-profile Washington journalist, and her 18-year career is over.
The film takes a personal approach, following Plame from the perspective of a mother, wife and patriot as she deals with the demise of her career, reputation and possibly her marriage. Fair Game is worth watching just to see Penn and Watt work together. They were great mates (before Sean started dating Scarlett Johansson, a relationship Watts reportedly disapproved of) and have built up a convincing on-screen partnership after working together on films such as 21 Grams and The Assassination of Richard Nixon.
Rialto’s World Cinema series this month features films from Germany, and this Tuesday (4th September, 8.30pm) launches with John Rabe, winner of Best Picture at the German Film Awards in 2009.
It’s an epic tale of a little known historical figure, but one who played a major part in saving the citizens of Nanjing from the Japanese in late 1937/38. Rabe was the manager of a Siemens power plant in Nanking and due to leave China just as the Japanese were approaching. Convinced by other ex-pats, he decided to stay and was instrumental in setting up a protective International Safety Zone, saving hundreds of thousands of lives in the process.
The story is largely told from a western point of view. Considering the portrayal of the cruel treatment of Chinese prisoners by the Japanese army it’s not a surprise this film was banned in Japan. If you’re a fan of historical dramas them this is definitely worth a look, while a touch gloomy and melodramatic, this is a rewarding film about an ordinary everyday war hero.
Also kicking off this September on Rialto Channel is a new feature for crime lovers, the NZ premiere of the Swedish television series Wallander. The British thought this series, based on the best-selling novels by crime writer Henning Mankell, was so good they created their own staring Kenneth Branagh.
This original version stars Krister Henriksson, and includes 13 feature length episodes based either on Mankell’s novels or new storylines he suggested, and includes Before the Frost, Mastermind and The Secret. Fans of Mankell’s won’t be disappointed.
Enjoy.