Renowned American actor Harvey Keitel will make his third appearance at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
At the festival’s 39th edition in 2004, Keitel was awarded a Crystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to World Cinema. Eleven years later, he returned to Karlovy Vary in order to introduce Paolo Sorrentino’s Youth, in which he played one of the main roles. The film won the Právo Audience Award, which Keitel accepted in person.
One of Hollywood’s most respected character actors, Harvey Keitel is a regular collaborator of such acclaimed directors as Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, and Wes Anderson, and he has repeatedly worked with Ridley Scott, Jane Campion, and Abel Ferrara, among others. His portfolio includes dozens of awards and nominations, including Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for his role in Bugsy (1991) and an Independent Spirit Award for Bad Lieutenant (1992). In 1993, he was presented the Best Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival for his performance in the psychological drama Snake Eyes, and he took home a Silver Bear – Special Jury Prize from the Berlinale for his role in Smoke (1995).
On the occasion of Harvey Keitel’s visit to Karlovy Vary, the festival will present Mean Streets, the screening of which will be attended by the actor in person. The third film by one of America’s most distinctive filmmakers, Martin Scorsese, draws on his personal experiences from Manhattan’s Little Italy neighborhood. Charlie (Harvey Keitel), torn between his Catholic faith and his work for the local mafia, gets a chance at greater influence, but his ambitions are complicated by Johnny Boy (Robert De Niro), an irresponsible young man whom he has taken under his wing. Imbued with an unforgettable 1970s soundtrack, Mean Streets not only presaged Scorsese’s long-standing collaboration with De Niro and Keitel, but also hinted at the future direction of his work. In this film, we find the seeds of the themes that Scorsese would later develop in his most acclaimed works.
Harvey Keitel is one of several Crystal Globe recipients to have shot an original trailer for the Karlovy Vary film festival.
