Let’s run down the selection from Day 2, shall we?
Jeffrey Wells on Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Three Monkeys- “I was in a fairly excited state because I knew -- I absolutely knew -- I was seeing the first major film of the festival. Three Monkeys is about focus and clarity in every sense of those terms, but it was mainly, for me, about stunning performances -- minimalist acting that never pushes and begins and ends in the eyes who are quietly hurting every step of the way.”
Salon.com’s Andrew O’Hehir on Waltz With Bashir- “Dredging up these dreadful memories may have been therapeutic for the men involved, but the point of "Waltz With Bashir" is bigger than that. It's a provocative, strange and arresting film, whose unusual blend of style and substance should reach a large worldwide audience.”
Jay Weissberg in Variety on Leonora- “Confirming the superb compositional eye he revealed in "Born and Bred," helmer Pablo Trapero creates a suitably enclosed world focused on an accused pregnant murderess through jail and childbirth, witnessing the development of mother and child as the rusty wheels of Argentinean justice creak slowly along.”
And finally, Allen Hunter of ScreenDaily on Kung Fu Panda- “The storyline of finding the hero inside yourself is no less obvious but is given a sprightly freshness by the breathless pace, attention to detail and sheer good fun on offer. It might not be an instant classic but it is extremely entertaining and a definite crowd-pleaser.”