The Reims Police Film Festival has just opened its 2nd edition, the first in the presence of the public, juries, and film crews, after a virtual 2021 edition. On the program, thrillers, detective films, action, and tributes paid in particular to directors Walter Hill and Martin Campbell.
Reims Polar, 2nd!
After 25 years in Cognac and 12 years in Beaune, it is in the first city of Champagne-Ardenne and the capital of champagne that the Police Film Festival has settled. For this second edition of Reims Polar, from April 5 to 10, the organizers have made small cuts by offering the main competition of ten films from all over the world a “Sang Neuf” section consisting mainly of first feature films, films presented out of competition, a special selection in honor of Spanish cinema…
A rich program, therefore, on which prestigious jurors will focus all their attention. To judge who will win the competition Niels Arestrup chairs a jury composed of the writer Hervé Le Corre, the actress Géraldine Pailhas, the directors Florent-Emilio Siri and Sébastien Marnier, the actress, screenwriter and director Hélène Fillières, and finally the president of the Académie des César Véronique Cayla.
They will have the difficult task of awarding two prizes, the Grand Prize and the Jury Prizeto two of these ten films: Are you lonesome tonight? (China), Assault (Kazakhstan, Russia), Between life and death (France, Spain, Belgium), Future is a Lonely Place (Germany), Midnight Silence (Korea), Rhino (Ukraine, Poland, Germany), The Daughter (Spain), The Execution (Russia), The Generation of Evil (Lithuania), Tros (A Piece of Land) (Spain and Argentina).
Distinguished guests
For its opening night, the screening of the Spanish film Between life and death was preceded by a first tribute to the great American director Walter Hill known for his achievements as The Brawler, Driver, Without return, 48 hours and 48 more hours, as well as for its scenarios. He was notably in the writing of ambushes of Sam Peckinpah and especially those of Alien, the eighth passenger, Aliens, the return, and Alien 3. During this tribute, some images of his next movie Dead for a Dollar an old-school western starring Willem Dafoe and Christoph Waltz, were shown.
He is not the only one to be honored by the festival, since New Zealand director Martin Campbellto whom we owe in particular goldeneye and Casino Royale will receive a tribute on Thursday, April 7 before the screening of Are you lonesome tonight, in competition. In addition to his two James BondsMartin Campbell distinguished himself with The Mask of Zorro, Vertical Limit, or The Foreigner.
Other Guest Brand Director: Rodrigo Soroyen. Very rising star of Spanish cinema whose last two films El Reino and Madre were widely acclaimed. His tribute will precede the screening of the film Rhino, directed by Oleh Sentsov.
