This highly entertaining and informative biography presents Beethoven as a working artist rather than a caricatured grumpy genius. It largely consists of sublime excerpts of his music, and, an extraordinary collection of eminent and articulate musicians, conductors and musicologists, all with their different accents and personalities sharing their enthusiasm in an accessible and illuminating way. But of course the real star of the show is the wonderful music; there is plenty of it, and its performed by some of the world's greatest musicians with evident love and appreciation.

Sat 13 March - Birdwatchers (15)

Forced off their land a group of Guarani Indians get paid to pose as savages for passing tourists. Although they reclaim their land and one boy, who is training to be a shaman, starts a relationship with the rancher's daughter they inevitably fall foul of the rancher's prejudices. Through the story of two young boys caught between their father's desire to continue to live the traditional way and their own desire for Nike trainers this sensitively explores the devastation the Indians face with their displacement from their land. Shot with a luminous, dreamy clarity and underscored by a lairy wit that cuts through any solemnity or pretentiousness this is a gripping account of the inevitable fall-out that occurs when two cultures collide.

 

Borderlines Films see the Catalogue or go to http://www.artsalive.co.uk/venue.aspx?id=3