Stars and 'Snow' fall as Berlin Fest bows
Although Danish reviews of the film have been less than glowing, German observers hope that Munich producer Bernd Eichinger ("The Name of the Rose," "The House of the Spirits") will have an international hit on his hands with "Smilla." It's based on Danish author Peter Hoeg's bestselling novel about an intrepid young woman who travels to Greenland to solve the mystery of an Eskimo boy's death.
"Smilla" lead Julia Ormond, as well as Catherine Deneuve, Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas, Juliette Binoche, Alain Delon and Armin Mueller-Stahl are on the list of European celebrities expected to attend the festival.
Stars such as Jack Nicholson and Sandra Bullock have canceled plans to come, suggesting that the U.S. presence at this year's Berlinale will not be as strong as organizers had hoped. Lauren Bacall, Willem Dafoe, Spike Lee, Courtney Love, Martin Short, Chris O'Donnell, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kim Novak, who will be receiving an award for lifetime achievement, are among the Americans who are making their way to Berlin.
Of the 25 films contending for Golden and Silver Bears in this year's competition, Milos Forman's "The People vs. Larry Flynt," the controversial portrait of the Hustler magazine publisher, is already among the most talked about in the German capital.
Flynt himself is expected to be on hand for the pic's international premiere on Saturday. Berliners are also queuing for tickets to Anthony Minghella's Oscar-nominated "The English Patient" and John Singleton's "Rosewood."
Bidders are warming up for the Berlinale's European Film Market, one of the first opportunities of the year to buy and sell international films.
While market topper Beki Probst won't offer an opinion on which pics might be the hot sellers at this year's market, there will be more U.S. indies and Asian tradesters in Berlin than in the past.
Probst has added two new screening rooms to fit in the more than 350 films at the market. With more space available in the Cine Center than last year, organizers hope that marketeers will sweat a little less in their roomier stands
