San Sebastian Dispatch. 9.

After a bittersweet Friday in the company of a brilliant Woody Allen (Match Point in the Zabatelgi section) but also a forgettable Roger Donaldson (The World's Fastest Indian, a strange ending for the fest), the Awards for 53rd edition of San Sebastian Festival were announced this afternoon.

And they are a little numbing. Zero mentions for some of the best pictures of the Official Section (El Aura, A Cock And Bull Story), a Special Jury Prize for a film rather forgettable from the strict perspective of cinema (Iluminados Por El Fuego), a Silver Shell for Best Actor to a guy who's almost incapable of expression (Juan José Ballesta in 7 Vírgenes), another shell for a director at the lowest point of his career (Zhang Yang for the mediocre Sunflower)... Sad but true news. The only good news is that Golden Shell (the highest rated award) goes to the little Czech gem Stesti (Something Like Happiness), whose actress Anna Geislerová has also received a shell for her work. To see the whole list of awards, you can go here.

Posted by dwhudson at September 24, 2005 12:27 PM