Berlin film festival needs hit after several misses (Reuters)

The fact that at the half-way stage of this year's Berlin Film Festival the frontrunner for prizes is a major Hollywood production with eight Oscar nominations already to its name is a discouraging sign, critics say.

"There Will Be Blood," starring Daniel Day-Lewis as a scheming oil prospector in early 20th century America, is the favorite for the Golden Bear award for best film after 11 of 21 competition films had screened.

"Everyone is raving about 'There Will Be Blood', but it's already out in the United States," said Lee Marshall, film critic for trade publication Screen International.

"I can see that for (festival director Dieter) Kosslick it is a difficult juggling act, and it's great to have an Oscar-nominated film in competition as it gets people talking, but it goes against the discovery remit."

Jay Weissberg of Variety agreed, and argued that Berlin lacked the buzz of other festivals and other years.

"Everybody is saying that there's nothing to get excited about," he said. "Of course every festival has good and bad years, so it does not mean Berlin is going down, but unfortunately this has not been a good year."

Critics noted that several of the 21 films in competition were not world premieres, meaning that any excitement surrounding them had come and gone. Of those that were first showings, many had been disappointing, they added.

"Julia," directed by France's Erick Zonca, has had bad reviews despite a strong lead performance by Tilda Swinton, while "Gardens of the Night" by British film maker Damian Harris also fared particularly poorly with the critics.

On the plus side, "Lake Tahoe," a slow, humorous story of a young Mexican teenager, is among the favorites to win prizes, while "Elegy," starring Penelope Cruz and Ben Kingsley, was also well received.

And both "The Song of Sparrows" by Iran's Majid Majidi, about a man whose materialism threatens his happiness, and "The Sparrow" by Hong Kong's Johnnie To, brought a touch of humor to a generally serious selection of films.

As always, Kosslick sought to strike a balance between strong films and star power, and few argued with his choice of concert documentary "Shine a Light" as the opening film.

Although not in competition, Martin Scorsese's intimate picture of the Rolling Stones on stage ensured the British rockers were on the red carpet for a huge crowd to cheer.

Critics and journalists argue that since then the festival has fallen flat, with only Day-Lewis and Cruz generating any real buzz among fans.

That may change with the arrival on Wednesday of Madonna for her out-of-competition directorial debut "Filth and Wisdom."

Other highlights yet to come include "Standard Operating Procedure," an examination of the abuse of prisoners at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison by U.S. soldiers.

Polish director Andrzej Wajda also presents non-competition movie "Katyn," about the still-sensitive topic of the massacre of Polish officers ordered by Soviet authorities in 1940.

Lee said Berlin had lost ground in recent years to its European rivals, although a booming market for buying and selling movies had helped maintain big studio interest.

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(Editing by Giles Elgood)