Critical Week: A big bromance

I've been taking it a bit easier this week, catching up after the film festival. But there have been a few screenings to attend. First there was the mammoth sequel Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, screened to the press in Imax. Essentially a cartoon with a few humans running around in the margins, this is a movie that will make die hard fans happy, but others might be wise to steer clear. Meanwhile, Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway have a lot of fun layering on insinuating intrigue in Mothers' Instinct, a Hitchcock-style slow-burn thriller that's thoroughly entertaining.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
The Beautiful Game
Disco Boy
PERHAPS AVOID:
Godzilla x Kong
ALL REVIEWS >

Even better is the British feel-good drama The Beautiful Game, about a homeless football team. Thankfully, the on-pitch action is kept in check for more character-based comedy and drama. Liam Neeson and Kerry Condon are terrific in the gritty thriller In the Land of Saints and Sinners, set during the Troubles in 1970s Ireland. And the French drama Ama Gloria takes a child's eye view for a slice of life with a couple of momentous moments along the way.

This coming week I'll continue catching up on things, and I have screenings of Scoop, The First Omen, Woody Allen's Coup de Chance, If Only I Could Hibernate and Someone Like You.

LFF: Own the night

It's odd to experience the 66th London Film Festival from the outside, after 28 years covering it as accredited press. I'm seeing as many films as usual, but the process is far less stressful, as I'm working with distributors and publicists who invite me to screenings, rather than queuing up for early morning press shows. It's still very busy, but it's remarkable how less stressful it is when you see whatever you can and don't worry about anything else. This has also provided some nice surprises this year so far. Here's another bunch of highlights...

Empire of Light
dir-scr Sam Mendes; with Olivia Colman, Micheal Ward 22/UK ****
Writer-director Sam Mendes packs perhaps too much into this personal 1980s drama. Infused with a love of cinema, the film's central storyline also takes on loneliness, racism, sexual harassment and mental illness. It's rather a lot for such a warmly beautiful film, but if any actress can bridge all of this material together it's Olivia Colman, who radiates emotional resonance that brings focus to each theme and makes this well worth a look.

Utama
dir-scr Alejandro Loayza Grisi; with Jose Calcina, Luisa Quispe 22/Bol ****
The title of this Bolivian drama is the Quechua word for "our home". Set in the highlands, it focusses on the details of life for an elderly couple that is grappling with an extended drought. Writer-director Alejandro Loayza Grisi assembles this in a documentary style, creating a vivid depiction of the local culture. It's a gorgeous slice of life with properly momentous undertones.

Rodeo
dir-scr Lola Quivoron; with Julie Ledru, Yannis Lafki 22/Fr ***
Diving headlong into a subculture, this French drama spirals around a young woman who is obsessed with riding off-road motorbikes in street gangs. There's little context to the characters or situations, and the script's plot feels rather over-familiar as it develops a series of moral conundrums. But writer-director Lola Quivoron blasts energy through each scene, which makes the film feel urgent and involving. And biker-turned-actress Julie Ledru has terrific screen presence.

And four films I saw previously...

Triangle of Sadness
dir-scr Ruben Ostlund; with Harris Dickinson, Charlbi Dean 22/Swe ****
Another lively provocation from Swedish filmmaker Ruben Ostlund, this pitch-black comedy overflows as big ideas are laced through an ambitiously epic tale. It's an exploration of the divisive nature of class, gender, race, disability and language. And as the plot spirals through its pointed chapters, the film can also be seen as a social media parable. It's messy, but the way it challenges the viewer is also exhilarating... FULL REVIEW >

The Whale
dir Darren Aronofsky; with Brendan Fraser, Hong Chau 22/US ***.
Based on Samuel Hunter's play and retaining a stagey claustrophobia, this pointed drama is unusually contained for Darren Aronofsky. It's about how people impact each other for good and bad, and is likely to divide viewers along lines of optimism and cynicism. Although few will be able to resist a startlingly winning performance from Brendan Fraser, even from within an enormous fat suit. And the deeper ideas strike a nerve... FULL REVIEW >

Butterfly Vision
dir Maksym Nakonechnyi; with Rita Burkovska, Liubomyr Valivots 22/Ukr ****
Beautifully observed with a sharp attention to detail, this Ukrainian film is packed with powerful issues but plays out matter-of-factly, without exaggerated melodrama. Set during Russia's long campaign in Donbas, before this year's invasion, the film is less timely than timeless, with scenes that are packed with complex issues and personal nuance. And as it takes on bigger ideas, this clear-eyed but over-serious film becomes often unnervingly resonant... FULL REVIEW >

The Damned Don't Cry [Les Damnés Ne Pleurent Pas]
dir-scr Fyzal Boulifa; with Aicha Tebbae, Abdellah El Hajjouji 22/Mor ****
Grounded and earthy, this Moroccan drama finds resonance in a complex relationship between a woman and her teen son. It's the kind of film in which the audience must work to discover deeper truths about the events depicted. The premise feels bracingly realistic, impossible to predict as it cycles through events that are hopeful and darkly troubling. And this authenticity in the story and characters bravely takes on the system... FULL REVIEW >

All London Film Festival reviews, once they're uploaded, will be linked to SHADOWS' LFF PAGE >

LFF: Make history

Well, that was a first and hopefully a last as well: the 64th BFI London Film Festival was an almost entirely virtual event, with a few in-person screenings just to keep the atmosphere alive for the lucky few who managed to get tickets. For me it was an intense two weeks of watching movies at home on my computer - but they're some of my favourites so far this year. Going through this makes me long even more for a time when things can return to normal, even if that's hard to imagine at the moment. Will the world still even exist a year from now? The signs aren't good, but there's still some hope. Here are my last two highlights, plus my best of the fest...

Ammonite

dir-scr Francis Lee; with Kate Winslet, Saoirse Ronan 20/UK ****

With a remarkable attention to detail, this beautifully observed drama recounts an unexpected relationship that crosses various boundaries in 19th century England. Writer-director Francis Lee takes an elemental approach, underscoring a low-key narrative with passion, earth and grit. At its core, this may be a moving love story, but it also carries with it a range of ideas that are strongly resonant nearly two centuries later... FULL REVIEW >

Lovers Rock

dir Steve McQueen; with Amarah-Jae St Aubyn, Micheal Ward 20/UK ****

Bristling with energy and colour, this 1980-set drama unfolds to the beats of the eponymous musical genre. Without a pushy narrative, this is pure cinematic bliss, a blast of happiness in a safe space away from the racism and riots in the streets. Steve McQueen, with cowriter Courttia Newland and ace cinematographer Shabier Kirchner, skilfully depicts one Saturday night, and into Sunday morning, when the world belongs to hopeful youth... FULL REVIEW >

~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~

M Y   B E S T   O F   T H E   F E S T

1. 
   Mangrove
2. Nomadland
3. After Love
4. One Night in Miami...
5. Notturno
6. Never Gonna Snow Again
7. The Salt in Our Waters
8. Time
9. Ammonite
10. The Reason I Jump

Special mention: Lovers Rock, Another Round, Possessor, Limbo, African Apocalypse, David Byrne's American Utopia, The Painter and the Thief, Supernova, I Am Samuel, Wolfwalkers. 

ALL REVIEWS >

NB. My anchor page for the LFF is HERE and full reviews are all linked there, with winners of the audience awards to come soon.