Ari Folman’s ‘Congress’ triumphs at Fantastic Fest

Ari Folman’s The Congress was named best picture and that film’s Robin Wright won the best actress prize Tuesday.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Waltz with Bashir (photo credit: REUTERS/Jason Reed)
Waltz with Bashir
(photo credit: REUTERS/Jason Reed)
Ari Folman’s The Congress was named best picture and that film’s Robin Wright won the best actress prize Tuesday at the annual Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas.
The second film from Israeli writer/director Ari Folman (Waltz With Bashir), The Congress is loosely adapted from sci-fi heavyweight Stanislaw Lem’s 1971 book The Futurological Congress.
Folman’s English-language feature puts an intriguing spin on the story, framing it around the story of an aging Hollywood actress – played by Robin Wright, playing a version of Robin Wright (she also produced) – who is contemplating the last contract offer she’ll ever receive.
Confronted by her loving but frustrated agent (Harvey Keitel), Robin eventually agrees to a unique deal with the devil – here, a “Miramount” studio boss played by Danny Huston. Robin agrees to have her chemical makeup scanned so that an eternally young and digitally animated Robin Wright can go on acting for years, while the real, ever-aging Robin Wright is contractually bound to never act again.
The Congress recently opened up the 29th Haifa Film Festival.