REVIEW: ‘Time Bandits’ adaptation channels its Monty Python roots
Apple’s new comedy series reimagines Terry Gilliam’s time-hopping cult classic
Updated 01 August 2024
Matt Ross
LONDON: It’s hard to think of many people better suited to breathe new life into Terry Gilliam’s 1981 surrealist comedy film “Time Bandits” than Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi (creators and stars of “What We Do in the Shadows”), and Iain Morris (co-creator of “The Inbetweeners”). After all, helmers like that clearly know how to tread the fine line between silly fun and silly stupid, and the backing of Apple TV+ means none of the low-tech effects and plywood sets typical of the original movie. Although some might argue that its Eighties aesthetic gives Gilliam’s film much of its now-beloved charm.
So all the signs for this big-budget remake series — which follows a cohort of time-travelling thieves and a starry-eyed nerdy kid who ends up being their newest recruit — are good. Kevin (newcomer Kal-El Tuck) is a history-obsessed 11-year-old with no friends, and a family that doesn’t get him. So when the Time Bandits, led by Penelope (Lisa Kudrow), stumble into his bedroom as they traverse time and space, Kevin wastes no time in tagging along. As he learns, the troupe have stolen a map of the universe from the supreme being (Waititi), and attracted the attention of the sinister Pure Evil (Clement). They now find themselves pursued by an array of wondrous and terrifying characters as they hopscotch through the history books Kevin loves so much.
With 10 episodes (two of which were available at the time of writing) to play with, instead of a 90-minute movie, Clement, Waititi and Morris have much more freedom to indulge their silly imaginations — and they manage a good approximation of that post-Monty Python, Gilliam-esque humor — as they lampoon historical figures from across the ages.
In Tuck they have a pleasant-enough child star, but the master stroke here is Kudrow as the ceaselessly sardonic leader of the Bandits. For while the script is decent, it’s Penelope’s wearied frustrations with her fellow thieves — and her hilariously unfounded distrust of a very polite 11-year-old boy — that give this show its hook.
The new “Time Bandits” might have streaming-money polish, but it’s still got that unerringly charming, wonderfully silly, Gilliam heart.
Directors show solidarity with Palestinians during Venice Film Festival speeches
Updated 08 September 2024
Arab News
DUBAI: The final ceremony of the Venice Film Festival on Saturday saw multiple winners use their acceptance speeches to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and condemn Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
“As a Jewish American artist working in a time-based medium, I must note, I’m accepting this award on the 336th day of Israel’s genocide in Gaza and 76th year of occupation,” said US director Sarah Friedland as she accepted the Luigi de Laurentiis prize for best first film for “Familiar Touch.”
“I believe it is our responsibility as filmmakers to use the institutional platforms through which we work to redress Israel’s impunity on the global stage. I stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine and their struggle for liberation,” she continued.
Kathleen Chalfant, Orizzonti Award for Best Actress winner, and Sarah Friedland (R), Lion of the Future – "Luigi De Laurentiis" Venice Award for a Debut Film and the Orizzonti Best Director award winner, pose during a photocall. (AFP)
The director’s comments were met with strong applause, Deadline reported. Her speech comes amid Israel’s 10-month military campaign in Gaza in which more than 40,000 Palestinians, including more than 16, 000 children, have been killed. The current conflict was sparked by the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, in which 1,139 were killed, including 36 children.
Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti accepted the best screenplay prize in the Horizons section for his films “Happy Holidays.”
“I stand here deeply honored, yet profoundly affected by the difficult times we’re living through over the past 11 months, our shared humanity and moral compass have been tested as we witness the ongoing genocide in Gaza,” he said on stage.
“This painful reality reminds us of the devastating consequences of oppression, which is a theme in our film. Our film looks at how moral narratives can bring us together as communities, but also blind us to the suffering of others.”
Meanwhile, “The Room Next Door,” Pedro Almodóvar’s English-language debut starring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton, topped the Venice Film Festival and was awarded its Golden Lion award.
QUETTA: Earlier this year, Danial Shah, a Pakistani photographer and filmmaker currently pursuing a doctorate in visual and performing arts in Brussels, got an idea: to travel from the land of the colonizer, Britain, which had ruled the Indian subcontinent from 1858 to 1947, to the land that was colonized, present day Pakistan — but without flying.
Thus began a journey that took him from London to the southwestern Pakistani town of Quetta, the city of his birth, via trains, ferries, buses and taxis at a cost of $2,509.
“I wanted to start my journey from London, the reason is that Britain ruled our country for a long time, colonized us and it is Britain that gives us [Pakistanis] visas with great difficulty,” Shah, a 35-year-old documentary filmmaker and photographer, told Arab News in an interview in Quetta.
Pakistani photographer and backpacker Danial Shah, who travelled from London to Quetta in 58 days via trains, ferries, buses and taxis, uses his phone in a street in Quetta on September 3, 2024, during an interview with Arab News. (AN Photo)
“So I thought if I get a visa, I will start my journey from the place where the colonizer lives and reach the place which they colonized.”
Spending his early childhood in Quetta, Shah was always thrilled by the stories of foreign travelers who frequented the area and often arrived using what was dubbed the historic Quetta-London Road, once a popular route for international tourists and considered a ‘gateway’ to Europe.
“I often used to see foreigners here and when you asked someone their story, they would say, ‘We have come from Germany, from London, traveling through Turkiye and Iran’,” Shah said. “So, when I found time, I thought I should go on this journey also.”
This map, shared by Pakistani photographer and backpacker Danial Shah, shows his journey from London to Quetta. Shah’s 58-day-journey brought him home to Quetta via trains, ferries, buses and taxis at a cost of $2,509. (Photo courtesy: Danial Sheikh)
Frequent public commuting through the Quetta-London route, stretching over thousands of miles, began after the end of World War I and people even used it to travel to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, according to Dr. Irfan Ahmed Baig, a Quetta-based historian and author of the Urdu-language book ‘Quetta My City.’ European tourists choose the route to enter Turkiye via Greece and continued onwards to the Middle East and Asia. The route was diverted to Central Asia from Afghanistan, from where to leads to India and Bangladesh via Pakistan.
“A Quetta-London bound bus service was started in the 1950 but it was suspended due to unknown reasons,” Baig told Arab News. “During the Soviet Union’s incursion on Afghanistan, tourist movement through this route declined due to security reasons.”
Shah’s journey through a stretch of the route also did not come without difficulty as he faced strict border security checks on account of holding a Pakistani passport, considered one of the weakest travel documents according to global rankings, and amid fears about human smuggling and illegal migration.
This photo, posted on August 11, 2024 on Instagram, shows Pakistani photographer and backpacker Danial Shah, who travelled from London to Quetta in 58 days via trains, ferries, buses and taxis, at the Albania Museum in Tirana, Albania. (Photo courtesy: Danial Shah)
“At various border crossing points, I was the only one off-boarded from buses and questioned by border security forces,” he said.
But he powered on and the journey that began in London on July 3 took him through Europe, the Balkans and the Middle East, to Pakistan’s Balochistan province on August 21.
“From London, I traveled to France. From France, I went to Italy, where I took a boat to Croatia. From Croatia, I went to Serbia, Serbia to Bosnia, and from Bosnia to Montenegro, Albania,” the University of Antwerp student said.
“From Albania, I entered Greece. Then I took a boat from Greece to Turkiye and from Turkiye I took a bus to Iran. From Iran I traveled through buses and taxis and reached Pakistan.”
He said he was grateful for the people he met along the way and the hospitality and warmth he was offered.
“I enjoyed Bosnia the most, followed by Albania, and then Turkiye and Iran, because their manner of hospitality is similar to our Quetta,” Shah said.
His next plan is to save up for journeys to ever new countries and cultures.
This photo, posted on August 22, 2024 on Instagram, shows Pakistani photographer and backpacker Danial Shah, who travelled from London to Quetta in 58 days via trains, ferries, buses and taxis, in Iran. (Photo courtesy: Danial Shah)
“I wish to plan a year-long journey after saving some money to see more countries and additional stay,” Shah said, “because I met many people who were on the same route but traveling to Central Asia via Iran and Afghanistan to Vietnam.”
DUBAI: The Italian luxury label Roberto Cavalli closed out Dubai Fashion Week this week with a presentation of its spring/summer 2025 collection, marking the brand’s first showcase in the Middle East.
Models descended onto the runway against a backdrop featuring the brand’s signature golden emblem. The runway was framed by a textured wall, with lighting that emphasized the collection.
The show kicked off with a powerful display of bold black-and-white printed outfits, featuring eye-catching patterns reminiscent of animal motifs, setting the stage for what was to come.
(Supplied)
The models strutted down the runway in long, structured coats and tailored suits, complemented by wide-brimmed hats and high boots.
Sleek tailored suits, glamorous mini-dresses, and flowing gowns reflected a mix of modern sophistication and bold statement pieces.
As the collection progressed, the color palette began to shift from monochromatic tones to vibrant hues, starting with a bold introduction of bright greens. Flowing pleated dresses and figure-hugging designs in various shades of green took center stage.
(Instagram)
The green hues were followed by striking pinks and deep reds, with rose patterns adorning halter-neck dresses and flowing gowns.
In addition to the vivid colors, the collection featured a variety of textures. A standout piece was a fuchsia snake-patterned suit. Pleated fabrics added movement, while corset-style dresses highlighted structure and femininity. Flowing silks and airy satins further contributed to the collection’s dynamic mix.
(Supplied)
The show was attended by several celebrities and influencers, including “Dubai Bling” star Loujain Adada, Egyptian actress and model Enjy Kiwan, reality TV sisters Nadine and Farah Abdel Aziz, Tunisian model Ameni Esseibi, Emirati actress and TV presenter Mahira Abdel Aziz, Saudi designer and fashion influencer Tamaraah Al-Gabaani, Iraqi fashion blogger Deema Al-Asadi, and Egyptian style star Soha Taha.
The show concluded with Fausto Puglisi, the brand’s new creative director, stepping out to thank the audience.
Founded by the late Roberto Cavalli in the 1970s, the brand quickly became synonymous with Italian luxury and glamor. Roberto Cavalli has long been a staple on international runways and red carpets, and is known for its bold use of tropical patterns and animal prints.
DUBAI: Algerian filmmaker Merzak Allouche’s family dramedy “Front Row,” supported by the Red Sea Fund, screened this week at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival.
Allouche’s 19th feature tells the story of two matriarchs, Zohra Bouderbala and Safia Kadouri, who find themselves in conflict during a day at the beach. Zohra, accompanied by her five children, arrives early to secure a desirable spot, but tension arises when the Kadouri family is placed directly in front of them by a beach attendant.
Born in Exile unveils ‘nostalgic love letter’ to Libya at Dubai Fashion Week
Updated 07 September 2024
Saffiya Ansari
DUBAI: Fashion label Born in Exile, led by designer Ibrahim Shebani, showcased its latest collection at Dubai Fashion Week in the form of a “nostalgic love letter” to Libya.
Shebani is keen to pay homage to Libya’s culture and heritage through his collections with one of the few high fashion brands to emerge from the country.
“We go back to our traditional dress code. We revamp it (and) we make modern clothing that is inspired from our traditional clothing,” he said before touching on the country’s turbulent recent history.
“Also the geopolitical situation influences our work … In 2014, when the civil war broke out in Libya, we had a beautiful monument in the center of (Tripoli), which was a bronze statue. It was stolen. We had some extremist militias in the city, and they stole it and destroyed it,” Shebani said, referring to an incident in November 2014 in which militants were suspected of removing the statue of a naked woman petting a gazelle.
“That was very heartbreaking to everyone that lived there or was from that city, and that inspired the collection. I think what we really want to say with this collection is that you might take away things, you might destroy some things, but it’s very, very difficult to wipe out the history of a nation.
“So the collection … is really a nostalgic love letter to a place where I lived for 10 years,” he said.
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Shebani was born in Germany and grew up in Egypt and Libya, before relocating to Tunisia, where he currently runs his brand.
The designer praised Tunisia’s homegrown production capabilities, and lamented the common practice of high-end European labels manufacturing leather goods there before placing a “Made in Europe” tag on the product.
“For every single brand you can think of, the bags factories (in Tunisia) produce (the goods). If you do one step in Italy, which is as little as fixing a button on a shirt, you can say it’s made in Italy,” he said, emphasizing the importance of educating potential customers on the realities of where and how luxury goods are made.
“Also, I think one of the biggest problems we have in the region is that the buyers are not very familiar with the regional brands,” Shebani added.
“It’s so much easier just to go to Europe because it’s a nice experience to be in Milan or in Paris,” he said.
Shebani believes the key to unlocking a brighter future for regional designers is to strengthen fashion infrastructure in the region involving all the key players — “it’s designers, plus clients, plus buyers, plus press, there has to be more of us in the region.”
