London Film Fest: Take the prize

It's been another long, busy day at the 63rd BFI London Film Festival, going from film screening to epic-length queue to film screening, and repeat. I'm kind of losing the will to live at this point, as the films begin to blur a bit as actors pop up in multiple movies (Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, even Udo Kier). But at least all three films today were superb - easily four stars (two are below). And because we're all a bit punchy, there's a lot of camaraderie while standing in line. So I'm sure we'll all cheer each other on through the next three days of crack-of-dawn screenings to the finish line on Sunday. Here are Thursday highlights...

Le Mans '66 [aka Ford v Ferrari]
dir James Mangold; with Matt Damon, Christian Bale 19/US ***
There are plenty of exhilarating racing sequences in this revved-up drama about Ford's quest to best Ferrari at the iconic 24-hour French race. Director James Mangold captures the energy of the mid-60s period, and the lively personalities of the men involved in this story. But the script is badly out of balance, creating a corny movie villain simply to add some tension, while ignoring Ferrari completely.

Official Secrets
dir Gavin Hood; with Keira Knightley, Matt Smith 19/UK ****
Based on a true story, this riveting political thriller carries both a strong thematic punch and some powerful emotional elements. It's a strikingly well-made film that moves at a gripping pace to uncover a horrific violation of trust by the US and UK governments. It's also an urgent story that needs to be told now, and filmmaker Gavin Hood makes sure it feels darkly relevant at every step.

Earthquake Bird
dir-scr Wash Westmoreland; with Alicia Vikander, Riley Keough 19/Jpn ****
There's a wonderfully disorienting tone to this dramatic thriller, which gives the audience the perspective of a woman who may be losing her mind. Is someone trying to get her, or is she the killer? With Hitchcockian overtones, writer-director Wash Westmoreland crafts a mystery that snakes around in ways that are intriguing, sexy and also rather scary. And it feels even more involving because of its offbeat setting and characters.

Judy & Punch
dir-scr Mirrah Foulkes; with Mia Wasikowska, Damon Herriman 18/Aus ***
There's an ambitious artistry behind this raucous Australian-made film about jolly olde Englande. Taking on the tradition of those iconic battling puppets, filmmaker Mirrah Foulkes flips the legend on its head to make a colourful, blackly comical revenge thriller. The plot meanders all over the place, and the pacing is rather uneven, but it carries a fierce a kick of righteous anger about some big issues.

Pink Wall
dir-scr Tom Cullen; with Tatiana Maslany, Jay Duplass 19/UK ****
For his feature debut, actor Tom Cullen takes a remarkably ambitious approach, letting actors improvise within a clearly devised structure. The result is a film that feels almost unnervingly authentic, with characters and dialog that tell a specific, structured story while also capturing loosely disconnected rhythms of real life. Told out of sequence, it's the impressionistic story of a six-year relationship between Americans in Britain. It's warm, funny, sexy and moving.

Links:
Shadows LONDON FILM FEST homepage (full reviews will be linked here) 
Official LONDON FILM FEST site