Love is all around

TARTU - The Tartu Love Film Festival (better known as “tARTuFF”) pretty much does what it says on the tin, showcasing films that have love and all its different aspects at their center. Through Aug. 8-13 the Town Hall Square of Tartu will be transformed into an outdoor screening area where 12 feature films will unspool for the delight of audiences, alongside 11 documentaries that will screen at the Athena Center. There’ll also be concerts and lectures as a complement to all the filmic fun. This year, as the festival celebrates its 5th anniversary, “tARTuFF” takes on a decidedly ecological air as the paeans to love will also be pleas to save the world.

One of the big coups for the festival is the screening of “Melancholia,” the latest film from Lars Von Trier. Whilst gaining notoriety for Von Trier’s comments at the Cannes press conference after its premiere (in which the Danish director said in regards to Hitler: “He’s not what you would call a good guy, but I understand much about him, and I sympathize with him a little bit.”), the film itself is a breath-taking affair about the end of the world. It’s an intense and intelligent affair concerning two sisters and their tumultuous relationship against the background of a planet heading on a collision course with Earth. Those who expect a sci-fi movie will be disappointed as this is a bold examination of family relationships and depression.

But Von Trier is a visionary filmmaker who gives the end of the world a suitably epic feel whilst still managing to bring it a human dimension. With a Cannes award winning performance from Kirsten Dunst and an equally strong showing from Charlotte Gainsbourg, this is a bold and bombastic movie that should wow the audiences at “tARTuFF.” Also excellent is “Heartbeats,” Canadian director Xavier Dolan’s take on the love story which looks at the ordinary complications of love in an extraordinarily beautiful way. Full of wit, verve and intelligence it’s the work of a director whose career is going to move on in leaps and bounds over the next few years.

Aside from the youngsters, there are also some classic films including the superlative “Death in Venice.” The film sees Dirk Bogarde – in what is regarded by some as the finest performance in the English actor’s career – play a composer who visits Venice for health reasons. Whilst recuperating he becomes obsessed with the beauty of a young boy. Beautifully filmed by legendary director Luchino Visconti and stunningly performed, it’s an achingly poignant story of aesthetic beauty and unrequited love. Less profound are films such as “Empire of the Ants” and “Piranha” which, from their titles alone, gives you the distinct impression that these are going to be placed firmly ‘silly horror’ territory. Definitely a chance to experience some ‘Midnight Madness’ movies and enjoy plenty of entertainment where you can switch your brain firmly into the off position.

The documentaries throw up many gems including “Iron Crows,” an impressive examination of Indian ship breaking yards. Showing the epic scale of the work involved whilst juxtaposing it with the everyday lives of the ship breakers themselves (who are often paid very little to do very dangerous work), this is a moving affair. “Into Eternity” is a sobering examination of nuclear power plants whilst “Encounters at the End of The World” – from renowned director Werner Herzog – is a grandiose journey to the frozen wastes of the Arctic.

Add in events such as a flea market and a book fair and the fact that all the screenings are free, then “tARTuFF” is definitely a festival in which all those who attend are able to share the love.
The Tartu Love Film Festival takes place between Aug. 8 - 13 and all screenings are free.

For more information visit: www.2011.tartuff.ee