Montreal, July 28, 2010. A newly restored digital copy of the complete Metropolis has its Eastern Canadian premiere as a special gala of the Fantasia film festival in the 3000-seat Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des arts, featuring a new score by Gabriel Thibaudeau of the Cinematheque Quebecoise, performed by a 13-piece orchestra.

Buzz caught up with Thibaudeau after his last rehearsal with the orchestra at the Conservatoire de Montreal. The composer was a tightly wound ball of nerves, nervous for the premiere today of his game-changing, historic new soundtrack to one of his favourite films. “There exists already a score for the film,  it’s really dated music from 1927. It is very operatic—like Wagner or something. But i wanted a much more contemporary approach instead of big swells, there’s more special effects mixed in with the music. I’ve been with the Cinemathèque working with silent films for 20 years, and Metropolis was one of the first films I played on, and I’ve played it many times,” says the composer, who took half a year to compose the new score for the restored version. “Except that I think it was a revelation to see the new version because suddenly, there are some explanations about what Lang meant, some insights into what is really going on in the film.” Thibeaudeau continues that his score is composed of musical fugues that “sometimes not really melodies, just one piece of a tune repeated, building on itself, rather than swelling, symphonic sound. It’s really closer to what we hear these days in the cinema. Especially because Metropolis is a science fiction film, people will think of it differently with this soundrack, they’ll think of it as contemporary…I really want people to feel like this is a film that was shot three weeks ago. These images are less time-stamped than the music. You can really feel the datedness of the film, and the new score freshens it.” His rebuffal to purists who would object to the new score and digital copy: “It’s like saying that you can only enjoy the Mona Lisa by candlelight. Even if it’s a digital copy, the copy is wonderful. And since it will be on a very huge screen, you’ll feel all the mass of the crowd, and the majesty of the images. It will be quite something. ”

July 28th, 7:30 PM, Salle Wilfrid Pelletier

Info here: www.fantasiafestival.com

Guest blogger: Melora Koepke

The post METROPOLIS FINALLY COMPLETE, GETS NEW SCORE appeared first on Tourisme Montréal Blog.

A festival that’s programmed by a dedicated, almost saintly staff that knows how to please but also to challenge its audience. A festival that boasts a jam-packed schedule of can’t miss movies that cater to a following so dedicated and devoted that the auditoriums are surrounded by dedicated festivalgoers who actually line up – rock-concert-style—for the chance to see the latest Takashi Miike or Sion Sono movie as though it were a U2 megaconcert or something. Fantasia.

Fantasia. It’s the best fest around.

I’ve been a huge fan since before it was my job. I credit my cinematic education, at least in part, to long-lost Julys whiled away in the pre-reno Imperial theatre, where Fantasia used to be. For the last few years, since they made the move to Concordia University’s downtown campus, they’ve really been stepping up their game— amped-up fanboys and girls lined up around the block, for movies that, normally, could only hope for a DVD release or a rarified film-fest screening counched in obscurity.. But Fantasia fetes these movies comme il faut, playing to packed houses of educated, enthusiastic crowds. Let me put it this way: In this era where we’re more likely to consume our movies via blu-ray and torrents, Fantasia reminds us what it’s supposed to be like to go to the movies. They do what few film fests dream of: show movies that people want to see, to people who want to see them. I could wax poetic about the dedicated programmers whose passion for movies has reinstated the almost-lost art of theatrical screenings, but let me put it this way. A trip to Fantasia will remind you why you love movies, and why you loved them to begin with.

THE DETAILS

A quick jaunt to fantasiafestival.com will give you a day-by-day rundown of the schedule, or stay tuned for some highlights. One of the best features of the festival are the special spotlights—this year’s programs feature, among others “Subversive Serbia”—contemporary Serbian horror movies, and a special collection of South Korean premieres. Starting today (Friday), they’ll screen a documentary about Hershell Gordon Lewis, the “Godfather of Gore”, after HG himself does a special appearance and DVD signing at HMV. Later in the festival, after scores of anime and kung-fu extravaganzas and some of the goriest horror you’ve ever seen, they’ll award the Lifetime Achievement Award to cult master Ken Russell (The Lair of the White Worm). And to close out the festival, there will be a special screening of Fritz Lang’s Metropolis with 20 extra minutes and a new, live score. Stay tuned for more details.

guest blogger: MELORA KOEPKE, film critic

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