From: 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11273842

11 September 2010 Last updated at 16:12 ET  

Sofia Coppola wins Venice Golden Lion for Somewhere

The film tells the story of an actor whose aimless life is transformed when his young daughter comes to stay.

The prize for best director went to Spain's Alex de la Iglesia for his horror film, The Last Circus.

Vincent Gallo of France was named best actor for his role as an American Taliban in the film Essential Killing.

"Thanks to my dad for teaching me," she said in her acceptance speech.

"This film enchanted us from its first screening," said Quentin Tarantino, chairman of the jury which unanimously chose Copppola's film as the festival's best.

Coppola's last film, Marie Antoinette, was booed at its premiere during the Cannes Film Festival four years ago.

She is best known for her 2003 film, Lost in Translation, which starred Bill Murray and made her one of only a handful of women directors to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar.

Vincent Gallo, who won the prize for best actor, spent much of the Venice festival in a balaclava to escape the paparazzi. He did not appear on stage to accept his award.

The film Essential Killing, in which he plays an American Taliban captured in Afghanistan, was directed by Jerzy Skolimowski.

Congratulations to Sofia, she really is a pioneer in her own right in shifting the paradigm for female film directors!

'I'm glad it opened up the doors though and I'm humbled when friends' daughters come up to me and say 'I want to be like you'
'So many more women are making films. I'm so glad as there will be so many more points of view for the world to see'

She seems like a really down to earth, comfortable soul, doesn't she?

Another review of 'Somewhere', with a clip. Looks like a movie that I would like.



http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/reviews/2010-12-22-somewhere22_ST_N.htm

Anchored by engaging performances by Stephen Dorff and Elle Fanning, it trains a sharp eye on both the rarefied existence of a movie star and the world of an adolescent shuttled between divorced parents and yearning to find a home.

Given that the writer/director is Sofia Coppola and that a father-daughter relationship is at its core, it's hard not to look at this film through the lens of autobiography. How much is Fanning's young Cleo like Sofia struggling to find common ground with her famous filmmaker father, Frances Ford Coppola? Or maybe it cribs from the life of her movie-star cousin, Nicolas Cage?

Whatever the influence, Coppola knows something about fame, not only from her own upbringing and the lives of famous people around her but also as a celebrated filmmaker. Somewhere won the top prize at this year's Venice Film Festival, and her second film, 2003's Lost in Translation, won her an Oscar for best original screenplay.

Dorff makes the lead character, hard-living action star Johnny Marco, more likable than we might expect in a celebrity whose every need is anticipated and met. Had a different actor taken this role, Johnny might have been an obnoxious narcissist. But as played by Dorff, he's a lost, disconnected but inherently decent person, unfailingly courteous, even though he does tend to fall asleep during amorous encounters.

The film opens with him lying in his bed at the famous Sunset Boulevard hotel, Chateau Marmont, watching a pair of blond twins work a stripper pole. There's a pathetic quality to their cheery, gymnastic efforts. His slight smile is rueful. He has more depth than he lets on as he struggles to transcend the trappings of movie stardom. He shares sweet moments with the daughter he doesn't know well but loves, and he clearly has the heart of an artist. But he spends so much time trying to escape himself that at first we fail to see it.

Twelve-year-old Fanning is stepping out of the shadow of her older sister, actress Dakota Fanning. She is superb in the role of 11-year-old Cleo, a competent, strikingly mature and surprisingly unaffected child who has learned to fend for herself. She cooks like someone far beyond her years, whipping up a picture-perfect breakfast of eggs Benedict. But she giggles adorably at improvised silliness with her dad's buddy (Chris Pontius). She seems remarkably well-adjusted despite a checked-out mother and a dad always off on film sets.

There's a hypnotic, poetic quality to this impressionistic piece, with long, wordless scenes capturing the lassitude of Johnny's aimless existence. These scenes and the music speak volumes.

Some could find the story verging on self-indulgence, and indeed there are patches that teeter perilously close. But we care about the two main characters, and we root for them to reconnect as father and daughter.

That says much about Coppola's gifts as both a storyteller and a filmmaker.

OMG!! I've finally found this thread for Sofia. I have many things to share but I think I should stick to her ONLY. ^^

Before I could exit today, I will share you two images:

From Left to Right: Gian Carlo or Gio (16); father Francis Ford; Sofia (10) and Roman (14).

From Left to Right: Gia's mom, Jacquie; Gia and step dad, Peter Getty.

ENJOY~

Oh thank you so much, Lula!! ^^ The 1st picture with Gio was found somewhere else but I forgotten the link. I think I should recall all of my bookmarks here in my laptop as well as to my mom's too! ^^ The 2nd one was found in google images. ^^ I'm so into Gia who recently named as "Mini Sofia". If you could stare at Gia's face, you can barely see their resemblance. ^^ I love their family!! \(^^,)/