Roman Polanski

[knives]

I suppose I was vague on that point. He didn't get sent to any camps fortunately.

[Feego]

I think I remember reading somewhere that Polanski was tormented by Nazi soldiers as a boy, and was forced to dance around as they shot at his feet.

It's been years since I saw The Fearless Vampire Killers, but I don't recall the Shagal character being any more offensive than the stereotyped Jewish characters in, say, a Mel Brooks movie or The Nanny (Fran Drescher). In fact, I thought one of the funniest moments was when a girl tries to ward him off with a cross, to which he says, "Boy have you got the wrong vampire!"

[FakeBonanza]

I think I remember reading somewhere that Polanski was tormented by Nazi soldiers as a boy, and was forced to dance around as they shot at his feet.

Though he and his family were certainly tormented themselves, I believe that incident, in particular, was something that he had observed.

[MichaelB]

I think I remember reading somewhere that Polanski was tormented by Nazi soldiers as a boy, and was forced to dance around as they shot at his feet.

Though he and his family were certainly tormented themselves, I believe that incident, in particular, was something that he had observed.

Yes, that's true. And it's also the case that he's a ghetto survivor rather than a Holocaust survivor per se - although he'd clearly have been a prime candidate for the death camps if he'd been captured, and his mother did indeed die at Auschwitz.

[LavaLamp]

The Tenant is a great '70's pseudo-horror film. The paranoia & isolation that Trelkovsky (Polanski) feels in the apartment is almost palatable & creepy. This is probably my second-favorite Polanski film (my first being Repulsion).

Spoiler

I could never figure out the scene when many of the other tenants were standing motionless in the bathroom/toilet. Also, I know that the building that Trelkovsky moved to was quite old, but I was surprised that there was only one bathroom for the entire building. Haven't they ever heard of indoor plumbing?!

The only real issue I have with the film is the poor English dubbing during some of the scenes, especially the party scene at the beginning (when the Polanski character has his buddies/co-workers over to his apartment) and the young woman's dialogue (that he meets in the hospital room)

Here's hoping for a better release than what we've had so far. If any title is Criterion-worthy, IMHO this is.

[Dylan]

The only real issue I have with the film is the poor English dubbing during some of the scenes, especially the party scene at the beginning (when the Polanski character has his buddies/co-workers over to his apartment) and the young woman's dialogue (that he meets in the hospital room)

Yeah, the English track is jarring to be sure. Everybody except Polanski (for most of the scenes) and the Hollywood actors (Melvin Douglas and Shelly Winters) are speaking French and are (poorly) dubbed into English. Whoever dubbed Isabelle Adjani (who may have also been speaking English for a few scenes before being dubbed over... ?) doesn't work at all & the other voices seem very urban-metropolitan American for living in Paris, France! The effect is very campy and akin to Suspiria's English track.

That said, there is a French audio/English subtitle option on the DVD. It features Polanski and Adjani's own voices and (as far as I can tell) the original voices of the French cast, but of course dubs the Hollywood actors.

I love this film so I've watched it with both tracks. Again, the English track makes the tone of the film way more campy than it probably should be, but it works overall. The French track makes it much less campy, but not so much that it takes away the very Eastern European black comedy of Polanski's direction. It's a nutty film either way, which makes either track OK.

I'm not entirely sure which dub I prefer, to be honest. They're about equal, with maybe the French audio being the "better" film.

[Stefan Andersson]

Weekend of a Champion (1972), a docu about racing driver Jackie Stewart, has been restored and reedited (by Polanski) for imminent rerelease in France:

http://next.liberation.fr/cinema/2013/1 ... -f1_966985" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Polanski produced the docu, shot by Frank Simon.

[Koukol]

Polanski is one of my favorite filmmakers.
I'm another huge fan of THE TENANT and find the awkward humor in it brilliant and unsettling.

However, FVK might be my favorite film from any director and is essential viewing for the Holiday Season.
(I have the French BD on order)

I believe Shagal was inspired from Marc Chagall's THE GREEN VIOLINIST although I've yet to read or hear anyone else to say so except my brother.

[Koukol]

Well it's been reported that French subs are forced for the English track on the French BD of FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS.

[LavaLamp]

That said, there is a French audio/English subtitle option on the DVD. It features Polanski and Adjani's own voices and (as far as I can tell) the original voices of the French cast, but of course dubs the Hollywood actors.

I love this film so I've watched it with both tracks. Again, the English track makes the tone of the film way more campy than it probably should be, but it works overall. The French track makes it much less campy, but not so much that it takes away the very Eastern European black comedy of Polanski's direction. It's a nutty film either way, which makes either track OK.

I'm not entirely sure which dub I prefer, to be honest. They're about equal, with maybe the French audio being the "better" film.

Thanks for the info. I just recently re-watched The Tenant with the French language track (and English subtitles) for the first time, and it's like watching a completely different (and better) film! I don't understand French, but reading the English subtitles was fine, and the movie flowed a lot more naturally than the version with the characters speaking in badly dubbed English.

As you said, however, that didn't completely take away from the comedy of the film; one of the funniest scenes was when Trelkovsky (Polanski) went over to a work buddy's apartment and the guy played his music so loud a neighbor complained - instead of being apologetic, the guy happily told the neighbor off This was to supposedly convince Trelkovsky that he shouldn't be worried about complaining neighbors...

On a more serious note, the film is really quite creepy. On this re-watch, I noticed that in the very beginning credits through one of the apartment windows we see Simone Schuell?!, then the image changes and you see Trelkovsky - this foreshadows what will happen in the film...

Spoiler

The film seemed to suggest that Trelkovsky was either "possesed" by the dead spirit of Simone in the apartment, or that he just went crazy and thought he was becoming her...

Spoiler

And, I found this quite puzzling: At the very end of the film, you see a repeat of the scene when Trelkovsky & the young woman visit the bandaged Simone in the hospital bed, and she starts screaming uncontrollably - however, in this end scene it seems to imply that Trelkovsky was in the hospital bed, and he was screaming because he was seeing himself as the visitor?! Strange, but I guess that's why I like the film so much....

[flyonthewall2983]

Charlie Rose interview from 2000

[aox]

New Allegation

[mfunk9786]

I wouldn’t wish Polanski’s early life on my worst enemy, but I certainly wouldn’t wish crossing paths with the aftermath of that early life on them.

[dda1996a]

He has such a fascinating and despairing life I'm surprised no one dramatized it for the screen

[Cremildo]

He has such a fascinating and despairing life I'm surprised no one dramatized it for the screen

Well, Polanski himself will be making a documentary about his childhood in Poland.

[Forrest Taft]

There is also Polanski, an "unauthorized" biopic written and directed by Damian Chapa (who was Ken in Steven E. de Souza's Street Figher!). Chapa also stars as Polanski.

[mfunk9786]

Roman P.: Portrait of a Kid Grabber

Ooh, portrait! Sounds classy.

[McCrutchy]

According to the back cover, the Spanish Blu-ray of Based on a True Story from Entertainment One will have English subtitles. It also looks like a BD-25 with an additional DTS-HD MA 5.1 track in Spanish, but it might be the best English-friendly option to see the film for the foreseeable future, and it seems that the extras might be in English, as well:

Spoiler

[nolanoe]

Does anybody know how well Based on a True Story did? I missed it in cinemas, unfortunately, and am curious if he'll do another movie now.

[Cremildo]

Polanski is currently preparing his long-gestating project about the Dreyfus Affair, starring Jean Dujardin. There's a dedicated thread.

[nolanoe]

Polanski is currently preparing his long-gestating project about the Dreyfuss Affair, starring Jean Dujardin. There's a dedicated thread.

Thank you for the info. Now I'm excited.

[Aunt Peg]

According to the back cover, the Spanish Blu-ray of Based on a True Story from Entertainment One will have English subtitles. It also looks like a BD-25 with an additional DTS-HD MA 5.1 track in Spanish, but it might be the best English-friendly option to see the film for the foreseeable future, and it seems that the extras might be in English, as well:

Spoiler

I'm in Spain at the moment so I purchased a copy, as well as the Spanish film Campeones on Blu Ray. Won't watch them til I get back home in three weeks but I don't think I've actually liked a Polanski film since Oliver Twist.

[nolanoe]

REALLY!? Not even GHOST WRITER? That's peak Polanski for me.

[Cremildo]

REALLY!? Not even GHOST WRITER? That's peak Polanski for me.

While I wouldn't put them alongside my personal favorites (Chinatown, Bitter Moon, The Tragedy of Macbeth), both The Ghost Writer and Venus in Fur are pretty solid late-career works from Polanski. I haven't seen Based on a True Story yet, and I find Carnage much too lightweight for my taste.

[aox]

Polanski has been expelled from the Academy

along with Bill Cosby