Lyricist Hal David dies at 91

Hal David, the stylish, heartfelt lyricist who teamed with Burt Bacharach on dozens of songs for movies, television and a variety of recording artists in the 1960s and beyond, has died. He was 91.

David died of complications* from a stroke on Saturday morning at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to his wife Eunice David.

Stars land in Venice for art-house film festival

The Venice film festival commenced* on August 29 with the arrival of stars on water taxis for an art-house dominated lineup* dealing with issues from religious extremism to economic crisis.

First up at the world’s oldest film festival will be a showing of Mira Nair’s “The Reluctant Fundamentalist,” a political thriller about a young Pakistani man torn between Wall Street ambitions and the call of his homeland.

Chinese director Wong Kar-wai to lead Berlin fest jury

Chinese award-winning director Wong Kar-wai will lead the jury of the 63rd Berlin film festival in February, which traditionally highlights Asian cinema, organizers said on August 28.

Wong, best known for his 2000 slow-burn drama “In the Mood for Love,” will lead a panel* that will tap the winners of the Golden and Silver Bear prizes at one of Europe’s top cinema showcases running from February 7 to 17.

Venice premieres first-ever

Saudi film

Haifaa Al Mansour has the distinction of being the first person to ever film a movie in Saudi Arabia.

Al Mansour’s “Wadjda,” which premiered last week out of competition at the Venice film festival, is about a 10-year-old girl who dreams of having a bicycle so she can race a neighborhood boy. But the dream is just a little too subversive* for a deeply conservative Muslim society where women live segregated* existences and girls around Wadjda’s age are expected to begin fully covering their faces when in public.

(SD-Agencies)