Danny deVito is imposingly short, his charisma lifting him way above his movie contemporaries. I have been a fan of de Vito since he burst into stardom with ‘Taxi’ and followed up with great roles in films such as Twins and Throw Mamma From the Train. I had the pleasure to meet Mr DeVito last night at the Evolution Mallorca Film Festival in Palma where he was guest of honour at the opening gala of the 5th Mallorcan Festival. There is something wonderfully childlike about DeVito, as if his short stature helps him see the world through the eyes of a younger person. Indeed, in the speeches to honour him much was made of his unblemished reputation in the film industry as an actor and as a producer/director. A short movie – ‘Curmudgeons’ – produced by his son Jake and directed by Danny is also due to be shown at the festival.
Danny deVito at Majorca Film Festival 2016
The opening night film was a locally produced drama ‘El Destierro’ (Exile) by Arturo Ruiz which told the harrowing tale of 2 soldiers confined to a small military bunker during the violence of the Spanish Civil War. They capture a young women who is an enemy agent (a ‘Red’) which adds an explosive dynamic between the 2 soldiers, one of whom is a peasant farmer and the other a young priest. The film is sexually and politically charged with a steady build up of tension which leads inevitably to a sad but predictable conclusion.
I will be blogging , over the next 10 days, about the main English language movies that are screened during the course of the Mallorcan festival which I have the pleasure of attending.