Rome Film Festival unveils lineup

First batch of titles include Lumet thriller, 'Past'

By NICK VIVARELLI

Sidney Lumet crimer 'Before the Devil Knows You're Dead' is set for the Rome Film Festival.

The Rome Film Festival has announced a first batch of titles, including European bows of Sidney Lumet crimer "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" and Hector Babenco's Gael Garcia Bernal starrer "The Past," underscoring the tyro event's bent for mixing populist pics and artier fare.

Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke and Lumet are expected on the catwalk to tubthump the heist-gone-wrong-pic, which world preems in Toronto. Also segueing from a Toronto world bow is Babenco's dark love story, for which the Brazilian helmer and Garcia Bernal will be making the trek to Rome's Auditorium, organizers said. 

Other early Rome entries are Spanish helmer Julio Medem's feminist fable "Caotica ana," starring Charlotte Rampling; Dario Argento's slasher "The Mother of Tears," toplining his daughter Asia; Italo auteur Silvio Soldini's Genoa-set "Giorni e nuvole" (Days and Clouds); and Steven Sebring's U.S. docu "Patti Smith: A Dream of Life," for which Smith will perform a live mix of music and poetry.

Rome's kiddie section, Alice in the City, has secured the world preem of U.S. helmer Brad Isaacs' New Mexico-set "Have Dreams, Will Travel," starring Val Kilmer, who also will travel to Rome.

Also unspooling in Alice is Brit helmer Anand Tucker's "And When Did You Last See Your Father?," with star Colin Firth expected.

Sundance docu winner "War/Dance" is among entries in the fest's more cutting-edge Extra selection.

As previously announced, Francis Ford Coppola's "Youth Without Youth" will bow at the fest with Coppola and protags Tim Roth and Bruno Ganz in tow.

"Elizabeth: The Golden Age" will open the Premiere gala section with star Cate Blanchett and helmer Shekhar Kapur on the Auditorium red carpet.

The second edition of the Rome Film Festival runs Oct. 18-27, and the full lineup will be announced Sept. 27.