The British drama In This World has taken the prestigious Golden Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival, beating competition from high-budget nominees including Gangs Of New York, Chicago and The Hours. Michael Winterbottom's heart-wrenching film follows the plight of two Afghan refugees trying to build a new life in the west.
In a break from the norm, the best actress gong was awarded to all three female stars of The Hours, Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman.
The Silver Bear for best actor was meanwhile scooped by Sam Rochwell for his performance in George Clooney's directorial debut Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind. The film follows the story of a gameshow host who also works as an assassin for the CIA.
This year's festival, entitled "Towards Tolerance", was dominated by the more serious issues of refugees and prejudice, however. "People say these people shouldn't be here, they should be sent home," said Michael after winning the award. "But even if people are economic migrants, what's wrong with that?" The director dedicated the prize to the film's two characters, who were chosen from over a million refugees at Peshawar refugee camp in Pakistan.
"In a way it's for them as representatives of all those million people," he added. "And for all the other people in the world who face the choice of whether to stay in hardship and danger or to flee and try to make a new life elsewhere."
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
