What the Dickens? A scene from the film Oliver Twist, among 14 to be introduced during European Days. — File Photos   A touch of class: A scene from the movie Sonny Boy.

HA NOI — European cinema will shine out from local theatres to entertain movie buffs starting today in what will be the largest number screenings to date.

In a Better World, Danish director's Susanne Bier latest work and winner of the best foreign film in the US Academy Awards, will open the film festival at the National Film Centre at 8pm.

The film is one of 14 to be introduced by the European Union Member States during the celebration of European Days in Viet Nam which began last week.

After the festival's opening, films will be screened again on May 21 at 6pm.

The annual European film festival will feature an extensive and diverse range of films from Ireland, Sweden, Czech, Greece, Luxembourg, Finland, and the Netherlands. Each film will have two shows.

Two films entitled Une Vie de Chat (A Cat in Paris) from France and Chico & Rita from Spain will charm animation addicts. The Spanish film is set in 1948 in Cuba. Directed by Javier Mariscal and Fernando Trueba, Chico & Rita was nominated for the Best Animated Feature Film for the 2012 Oscars.

The films will be screened on May 19 and 21 for A Cat in Paris and May 23 and 26 for Chico & Rita.

Luxembourg is the only country to introduce two films, Panique au Village and Hot Hot Hot.

An animation, Panique au Village (A Town Called Panic) is a 2009 stop-motion animated film. It was directed by Stephane Aubier and Vincent Patar and is based on the TV series of the same name. It was the country's first stop-motion film and premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.

For those who love the works of Charles Dickens, one of his most known Oliver Twist will be screened. Directed by famous Roman Polanski, the British film celebrates one of the world's most inspiring authors and marks the bicentenary of Charles Dickens.

The film will be shown on May 25-26.

The Poll Diaries from Germany and Sonny Boy from the Netherlands provide viewers with a better understanding of history. The Poll Diaries is a historical drama told from the perspective of a 14-year-old girl. It is a deeply moving drama by director Chris Kraus.

Sonny Boy follows a mixed race couple during World War II who helped others to survive in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands of the 1940's.

Other movies include A Small Crime (Greece); Empties (Czech); Letters to Father Jacob (Finland); Made in Hungaria (Hungary); The Pier (Ireland) and Easy Money (Sweden).

This year, a short film section of the festival designed for children will offer a fantastic journey around Europe. Young cinema lovers will be entertained and amused by the diverse animated and featured films, including six short films from four countries: Une Histoire Vertbrale and La Chute de l'Ange (France), Manola (Germany), Free Chips Forever (Ireland), Jaccob's Film and Broken Moon (The Netherlands).

Since 2000, the festival has been a permanent feature on the cultural calendars of both Ha Noi and HCM City. This year, for the first time, the festival will be introduced in the central city of Da Nang from May 18-27 at Le Do Cinema, 46 Tran Phu Street.

The festival will run until May 27 in Ha Noi and from the 17th to the 27th in HCM City at Dong Da Cinema, 890 Tran Hung Dao Street, District 5.

All tickets are free of charge and can be collected for screenings at the following locations: the Goethe Institute, 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street; British Council, 20 Thuy Khe Street and L'Espace, 24 Trang Tien Street.

In HCM, tickets can be found at the Goethe Institute, 335/4 Dien Bien Phu Street, District 1; British Council, 25 Le Duan Street, District 1 and Dong Da Cinema, 890 Tran Hung Dao Street, District 5; in Da Nang at Le Do Cinema, 46 Tran Phu and at Cinema&Film Distribution Centre, 68 Tran Phu Street.

For details, see the separate film festival brochure available at the above-mentioned distribution places, or go to the website http://www.europeday2012.com/EUfilmfestival.html. — VNS