THE FLOWERS OF WAR Among First Berlinale 2012 Titles

The 2012 Berlin International Film Festival has just announced the first block of titles and it's an interesting list dominated by major arthouse films from around the world with a few pleasant surprises - such as the latest from Alex de la Iglesia - thrown in for good measure. Here's the complete list:

Captive, France/Philippines/Germany/Great Britain. By Brillante Mendoza (Serbis, Kinatay, Lola.) With Isabelle Huppert, Katherine Mulville, Marc Zanetta. World premiere.

Dictado (Childish Games,) Spain. By Antonio Chavarrías (Susanna, Volverás, Las vidas de Celia) With Juan Diego Botto, Barbara Lennie, Mágica Pérez. World premiere.

Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close, USA By Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot, The Hours, The Reader) With Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Max von Sydow, Thomas Horn International premiere / Out of Competition.

Jin líng Shí San Chai (The Flowers Of War,) People’s Republic of China. By Zhang Yimou (The Red Lantern, Hero, A Woman, A Gun And A Noodle Shop) With Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Atsuro Watabe International premiere / Out of Competition.

Kebun binatang (Postcards From The Zoo,) Indonesia/Germany/Hongkong, China. By Edwin (Kara, Anak Sebatang Pohon, The Blind Pig Who Wants To Fly) With Ladya Cheryl, Nicholas Saputra. World premiere.

Berlinale Special:

Death Row: Documentary series in four parts, USA. By Werner Herzog (Fitzcarraldo, Cave Of Forgotten Dreams) World premiere.

Don: The King Is Back, India/Germany. By Farhan Akhtar (Dil Chahta Hai, Lakshya, Don) With Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Boman Irani, Om Puri, Florian Lukas. German premiere.

Keyhole, Canada. By Guy Maddin (My Winnipeg, The Saddest Music In The World, Brand Upon The Brain) With Jason Patric, Isabella Rossellini, Udo Kier, Brooke Palsson. International premiere.

La chispa de la vida, Spain. By Álex de la Iglesia (El día de la bestia, Perdita Durango, The Last Circus) With Salma Hayek, José Mota, Fernando Tejero, Blanca Portillo, Juan Luis Galiardo, International premiere.

Marley Documentary, Great Britain/USA. By Kevin Macdonald (The Last King Of Scotland, Life In A Day, Touching The Void,) World premiere.