"A lot of the time, by saying less you convey more meaning. 'Less is more', that’s how I film; silence is more important than words. The marshlands have their own moments in the film and we have tried to respect them with silence. The soundtrack is the work of Julio de Rosa who created the perfect atmosphere of oppression and mystery which the landscape evokes." Director Alberto Rodriguez on his film "Marshland"


In my review of "Marshland", I wrote that every line of dialogue has significance. Also notable are the silences, what remains unsaid and that, I think, is the mark of a good director. The landscape, somewhat similar to the Everglades in Florida, is an important character in the film. Rodriguez uses overhead shots that turn the geography of Southern Spain into abstract art.
Rodriguez is currently in post-production on his next film, "El hombre de las mil caras" ("The Man of a Thousand Faces"), a thriller whose protagonist is a Spanish secret agent.

American director Brian De Palma is the subject of a new documentary co-directed by Gwyneth Paltrow's brother, Jake. The film opened on Friday in three theaters and will be expanding to more markets in the coming weeks. I recently viewed two De Palma films: "The Black Dahlia" (2006) and "Carlito's Way" (1993). The only positive thing I can say about "The Black Dahlia" is that the film was exquisitely photographed by Vilmos Zsigmond (whom I profiled in last week's article). Zsigmond collaborated with De Palma on several films and received his fourth and final Oscar nomination for "The Black Dahlia". "Carlito's Way", starring Al Pacino, represents the best of De Palma and is one of my favorite Pacino performances.

Ben Kingsley, another outstanding actor, recently discussed his film "Learning to Drive" in an interview with BBC radio. He talked about his director Isabel Coixet in glowing terms. Saying that Coixet filmed male vulnerability beautifully, he also expressed his wish that there were more female directors. You can check out the full interview at BBCWorldService.com/ArtsHour. You can also read my review of "Learning to Drive" on the Drama Movies site.

Here's the latest article from the Drama Movies site at BellaOnline.com.

Marshland Film Review
Two police officers in post-Franco Spain search for a serial killer while battling their own demons. A police procedural with a political subtext, "Marshland" won every major film award in Spain.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art17778.asp

Please visit dramamovies.bellaonline.com for even more great content about Drama Movies.

To participate in free, fun online discussions, this site has a community forum all about Drama Movies located here -

http://forums.bellaonline.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=postlist&Board=153


Angela K. Peterson, Drama Movies Editor
http://dramamovies.bellaonline.com

One of hundreds of sites at BellaOnline.com