The 16th Stockholm International Film Festival, held November 17-27.
The countdown has started. The Stockholm International Film Festival is now This year will present 160 films from close to 40 countries. Herewith a glimpse of this year’s extensive programme.

Here are some highlights of the selection.

A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE The Festival opener.
A convincing drama, where director David Cronenberg tells a story of the cruel way in which humanity relates to violence. Family father Tom is unexpectedly thrown into the spotlight and proclaimed the small-town hero after killing two criminals in what appears to be self-defence. A scarred gangster, who threatens the family’s whole existence and raises doubts about Tom’s true identity, soon approaches him. The film, which was nominated for the Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival, has an impressive cast, with names like Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris, William Hurt and Maria Bello. A History of Violence will open the 16th Stockholm International Film Festival, and David Cronenberg will attend the festival to receive the Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award in person.
Director: David Cronenberg

NINE LIVES
This episode-based film about nine women’s separate lives has one of the strongest line-ups in recent years: Kathy Baker, Glenn Close, Dakota Fanning, Holly Hunter, Sissy Spacek and Robin Wright Penn are all among the cast. As usual in the works of director and writer Rodrigo García, it is the women who play the leading parts and the men who act in supporting roles. García, who has written episodes for TV-shows like The Sopranos and Six Feet Under, is also an established cinematographer something that shows in the film’s powerful imagery. Nine Lives is a moving relationship drama, and who could do it better justice than the son of author Gabriel García Marquez?
Director: Rodrigo García


ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW
Miranda July’s much acclaimed feature film debut has already been awarded prizes at Cannes and made her into the darling of the world of cinema. The film, which Miranda July has directed, written and acted in, resembles Garden State at a female perspective, or a warmer version of Happiness. Me and You and Everyone We Know is both deep and wide-appealing, and has been a big artistic success as well as a box office hit.
Director: Miranda July

DUMPLINGS
A discarded soap opera actress is fretting old age after her husband has started seeing younger beauties. She gets so obsessed with looking young that she contacts the mystical Mei, whose speciality is vitalising meat dumplings with secret ingredients. Stunning cinematography by highly acclaimed cinematographer Christopher Doyle distinguishes this star-studded and expanded version of Hong Kong-veteran Fruit Chan’s contribution to Three Extremes.
Director: Fruit Chan

THE MYTH
Martial arts hero Jackie Chan is playing no less than two parts in The Myth: the archaeologist Jack, who is fascinated by a 2000 year-old love affair between a general and a princess, as well as the general himself. The film moves across different timelines, and the adventures are cleverly intertwined. Naturally, The Myth offers impressive fights signed Jackie Chan.
Director: Stanley Tong

LADY VENGEANCE
Chan-Wook Park, one of the most talked-about directors in recent years, is back after the success with the stylish action-wonder Old Boy. Park returns with a sharp female revenge film which is the final part in a revenge trilogy together with Old Boy and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance. Don’t miss the story about a super-cool leading lady who, after being released from prison, embarks on a merciless journey of revenge. In big sunglasses and with an immaculate fashion-sense, Lady Vengeance from South Korea is a natural heiress to Uma Thurman’s The Bride in Kill Bill.
Director: Chan-Wook Park

THE DYING GAUL
Peter Sarsgaard, winner of the ‘Best Actor’ award at the Stockholm International Film Festival 2004, stars as the playwright Robert. Robert is grieving his recently deceased boyfriend, when a producer starts to show interest in Robert’s script The Dying Gaul. After getting to know the producer and his wife, Robert finds himself caught in a love triangle of jealousy, sex and revenge. The Dying Gaul is a low-key drama with the impressive trio Peter Sarsgaard, Patricia Clarkson and Campbell Scott in the leading roles.
Director: Craig Lucas

RING OF FIRE
The young boxer Emile Griffith is struggling to win back the champion’s title from Benny Paret - but the fight ends in tragedy when Griffith inflicts Paret such serious injury that he dies in the ring. Ring Of Fire is a moving portrait of Griffith’s life before and after the fatal fight. The boxer is not only fighting the demons of the past he also suffers much abuse from the prejudiced macho-world of boxing.
Directors: Ron Berger and Dan Klores

STONED
Director Stephen Wolley here tells the story of legendary Rolling Stones-member Brian Jones, and he does it in the only right way with a groovy mix of rock’n roll and psychedelics. Visit the parties, music happenings, thoughts and tunes of the sixties in a film about one of the biggest rock acts ever. Stoned offers everything from today’s hottest bands to the legendary hits of the Rolling Stones.
Director: Stephen Wolley

3 NEEDLES
An epidemic has spread over the world and threatens to exterminate the entire population. Three people with different ethnic background get a chance to survive - if they make a pact with the devil. Things get bizarre and surreal when Thom Fitzgerald updates the Faust-myth with a line-up of the best north American actresses around: Chloë Sevigny, Sandra Oh, Sarah Polley, Stockard Channing, Olympia Dukakis and Lucy Liu.
Director: Thom Fitzgerald

Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award goes to the director David Cronenberg, and Terry Gilliam will receive 2005 year’s Visionary Award. Both directors will receive their awards in person.

http://www.filmfestivalen.se