Venice
(Reuters):
Dark
tales
of
real-life
crime
dominate
Hollywood's
star-studded
assault
on
the
Venice
Film
Festival
this
year,
with
US
directors
drawing
inspiration
from
murder
mysteries
of
the
1940s,
50s
and
60s.
The
11
day
competition,
held
along
the
exclusive
Lido
beachfront
across
the
water
from
Venice,
kicks
off
on
Wednesday
with
widely
anticipated
''The
Black
Dahlia'',
about
two
policemen
assigned
to
investigate
the
brutal
murder
of
an
unknown
actress.
Set
in
1947
and
based
on
a
crime
novel
by
James
Ellroy,
the
movie
stars
Scarlett
Johansson
and
two-time
Oscar
winner
Hilary
Swank
as
a
mysterious
figure
linked
to
the
crime.
As
with
other
major
productions
among
the
21
entries
in
the
main
competition,
Black
Dahlia
director
Brian
de
Palma
will
be
hoping
favourable
press
coverage
in
Venice
raises
the
profile
of
his
film
in
the
long
run-up
to
the
Oscars
next
year.
Hollywood
watchers
say
they
have
seen
little
so
far
in
the
way
of
potential
contenders
for
the
Academy
Awards
held
in
February,
and
film
festivals
like
Venice
and
Toronto
are
an
important
factor
in
the
countdown.
Last
year
''Brokeback
Mountain''
premiered
in
Venice
and
went
on
to
win
the
top
Golden
Lion
award,
helping
it
secure
pre-Oscar
buzz
and
go
on
to
be
the
favourite
to
win
the
best
film
Academy
Award.
It
eventually
lost
out
to
''Crash''.
''Four
American
studios
sent
their
films
to
the
Venice
film
competition
(this
year)
prior
to
domestic
release,
so
it
does
mean
there
is
a
special
visibility
...
created
by
the
Mostra,''
Venice
Film
Festival
director
Marco
Muller
said
today.
Behind
where
he
stood
final
preparations
were
underway
for
the
festival,
called
the
Mostra
del
Cinema
in
Italian,
with
dozens
of
winged
golden
lions
in
place
outside
the
main
theatre
and
the
red
carpet
being
unrolled
to
welcome
the
stars.
Muller
said
The
Black
Dahlia
was
a
film
about
the
''dark
side
of
tinseltown''
in
which
director
Brian
de
Palma
was
''waltzing
on
the
thin
line
between
the
artistic
and
the
commercial''.The
movie
is
a
fitting
opening
to
a
festival
also
featuring
competition
entrants
''Hollywoodland'',
about
the
mysterious
death
of
Superman
TV
star
George
Reeves
in
1959,
and
''Bobby'',
about
the
assassination
of
Robert
Kennedy
in
1968.
Hollywoodland
stars
Adrien
Brody,
Ben
Affleck
and
Bob
Hoskins,
while
Sharon
Stone,
Anthony
Hopkins,
Demi
Moore
and
Lindsay
Lohan
appear
in
Emilio
Estevez's
Bobby.
Out
of
competition
but
sure
to
create
a
stir
in
Venice
is
''Infamous'',
Douglas
McGrath's
take
on
the
life
of
writer
Truman
Capote
starring
Sandra
Bullock,
Daniel
Craig,
Gwyneth
Paltrow
and
Isabella
Rossellini.
Also
eagerly
awaited
by
Oscar
watchers
will
be
Darren
Aronofsky's
''The
Fountain''
and
Alfonso
Cuaron's
''Children
of
Men'',
with
Clive
Owen,
Michael
Caine
and
Julianne
Moore
about
a
plague
of
infertility
that
threatens
humankind.
Director
David
Lynch
is
expected
on
the
Lido
with
''Inland
Empire'',
as
is
Jackie
Chan
for
''Rob-B-Hood'',
Kenneth
Branagh
with
the
world
premiere
of
''The
Magic
Flute''
and
Paul
Verhoeven
for
''Zwartboek''
about
a
German
Jewish
girl
in
World
War
Two.
The
main
competition
includes
four
Asian
films,
underlining
Venice
as
a
festival
friendly
to
the
region.
Also
vying
for
the
Golden
Lion
is
Britain's
Stephen
Frears,
whose
''The
Queen''
examines
the
royal
family's
reaction
to
the
death
in
a
1997
car
crash
of
popular
Princess
Diana.