Machan(2008)

Director : Uberto Pasolini
Country : Srilanka/Italy
Running Time: 110 mins.
Uberto Pasolini won the award "Label Europa Cinemas" at Venice film festival

This lighthearted ensemble work looks at the extreme measures people will take to better their fortunes. The setting is Colombo, Sri Lanka, a country where tourists are irresistibly drawn to the beauty while many locals are eager to escape.

Stanley, a fruit seller with a penchant for failed schemes, is behind on his bills and constantly dodging creditors. Stanley's sister plans to leave her family to work as a maid in the Middle East. His kid brother sees petty crime as a better prospect than school. His handsome friend sells gigolo services to female tourists. Anything to get by. Stanley dreams of going abroad, where, he muses, “Everything will be new; even I'll be new.”

When he learns that Germany will invite international teams to a handball competition in Bavaria, he hatches a scheme. None of his friends know the game (which is played like a mix between soccer and basketball), but that doesn't prevent Stanley from recruiting them into his new Sri Lankan National Handball Federation as a pretense to get German visas.

Stanley and his cronies devote zero attention to actually practising handball, since their plan is to land in Germany and escape before playing. They spend their time gambling and raising funds through dubious activities, but as the scam gets closer to its realization, tensions mount within the team. What will await them in Germany? Will they all be thrown in jail before they even arrive?

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Uberto Pasolini

Uberto Pasolini began his film career in 1983 working as an assistant director on The Killing Fields. After a stint in the international marketing and distribution departments of Twentieth Century Fox, he joined David Puttnam’s company Enigma, where he spent three years working on a number of features including The Mission.

From 1986 - 1988, he was Vice President of Production with Columbia Pictures in Los Angeles, where he worked with among others David Mamet on Things Change” and Emir Kusturica on Time of the Gypsies. Returning to Enigma in London, he worked as Associate Producer on Istvan Szabo’s Meeting Venus, and produced Lawrence -- A Dangerous Man, which won the Emmy® Award for Best Drama in 1992.

In 1991, he left Enigma to set up Redwave Films (UK) Limited, and to start a two year period as a consultant for Columbia Pictures in London, where he also had a first look development deal.

In 1994, he produced Palookaville. Financed by American Playhouse and The Samuel Goldwyn Company, the film marked the screen debuts of director Alan Taylor and writer David Epstein. It was well received by both critics and audiences at the 1995 Venice Film Festival, where it won the International Kodak Prize for first and second features. Palookaville also screened at many American film festivals including the Sundance Film Festival in 1996.

In 1996, Pasolini produced the smash hit The Full Monty, which was again written and directed by newcomers, Simon Beaufoy and Peter Cattaneo, respectively. The film received its world premiere at the 1997 Sundance Festival and won audience awards at Locarno, Edinburgh, San Sebastian, Melbourne and Dinard Film Festivals.

The Full Monty enjoyed immense international box-office success as well as four 1997 Academy Award® nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Original Score, which Anne Dudley took home the Oscar®.

Rating : 8.0/10