We didn’t need dialogue. We had faces!
— Norma Desmond, Sunset Boulevard

*****

Like all film festivals, SIFF isn’t just about movies, but the faces that populate them. This isn’t to discount the directors, writers, and other crew members who bring films to life, but to acknowledge that gazing at other people is a big part of the movie-going experience.

It isn’t just about basking in the beauty of the conventionally attractive (The Banquet’s Zhang Ziyi, Interview’s Sienna Miller) or reveling in the strangeness of the unconventional (hello, Vincent “Mr. Vargas” Schiavelli!). We’re all attracted to different features for different reasons. Herewith, a few of my favorites from the fest.

While I admire these actors for their abilities—and talent can
make even the most bland or unattractive visage seem more appealing—these are seven faces I find inherently fascinating (including Red Road’s wide-eyed Nathalie Press, above).

Steve Buscemi: Interview, Delirious, Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten, and Joel and Ethan Coen’s portion of Paris, Je T’aime. (Here he is as Mr. Pink in Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs). The 33rd Seattle International Film Festival belongs to Buscemi!

Andy Lau: A Battle of Wits. Salon’s Stephanie Zacharek claims
he “has the face of a grave elf.” (He sings and dances, too.)

Charlotte Gainsbourg: Golden Door. The actress/singer
is the daughter of Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg.

Aïssa Maïga: Bamako and Paris Je T'aime. From Dakar, this
beautiful Michael Haneke favorite (Caché, Code Unknown)
is of Senegalese, Gambian, and Malian descent. Plus, she spells
her name with not one, but two umlauts—take that Motörhead!

Vincent Schiavelli: Golden Door. No, he wasn't pretty—
they can't all be—but his work (Fast Times at Ridgemont
High, Amadeus, etc.) speaks for itself. Golden Door was
the Sicilian-American actor/cookbook author's final film.

Thomas Turgoose: This Is England. Plucked from obscurity,
this unlikely lad nails his first leading role. Personally, I think he
looks like a young Winston Churchill—and I mean that as a compliment! He also has the world's most infectious laugh.

*****

You can appreciate Buscemi's inimitable mug in person as he'll
be in town to support Interview, his English-language remake of
Theo Van Gogh's 2002 drama. Click the links above for screening info
(where there are more to come). Paris Je T'aime opens at the Seven Gables this Friday, while Golden Door opens on 6/22 (venue TBA).