Fan Fare
Entertainment behind the scenes
UK comedies tackle Jews, Muslims, suicide bombers
As in all walks of life, where to draw the line is one of the big questions that faces the world of the arts.
In a field where shock value is a particularly prized commodity, artists — be they painters, film makers, musicians or authors – are constantly being criticised for going too far in what they paint/direct/sing/write.
The debate is back in the headlines in Britain with the new comedy “Four Lions“, a movie due out on May 7 that follows four hapless suicide bombers who plan to blow themselves, and many others, up at the London Marathon. The storyline from writer/director Chris Morris bears several similarities to the real-life suicide attacks on London commuters in 2005 that killed 52 people, and so to describe Four Lions as “controversial” might be an understatement. Making fun out of tragedy? Risking the ire of the Muslim community?
Publicity-shy Morris has a reputation for upsetting people. In 2001 he was behind a mock documentary on the subject of paedophilia which prompted hundreds of complaints from television viewers. Now the man the Times called “the most hated man in Britain” is bracing for another backlash, although he believes that the only controversy surrounding his work is that created by the media.
A Sundance filmmaker tell-all?!
The Sundance Film Festival is nothing if not about discovering new filmmakers and fresh voices in the world of cinema. Most of these writer/directors, of course, want their movies to make some sort of impact on audiences, but what impact does Sundance have on them beyond just selling their films into distribution or starting a career? We talked to some of them at a filmmaker meet-and-greet on Wednesday. Click on the video to see what they had to say.
