London Film Fest: Sleep with the fishes

And that's a wrap on my 22nd year covering the BFI London Film Festival. I haven't counted up the number of films I've seen this year, but it will still only be a fraction of the hundreds of movies that are programmed here. The closing night saw the international premiere of Martin Scorsese's new movie, and I actually walked right past Robert De Niro and Al Pacino at one point this afternoon, which was pretty cool. Then I saw all three of them, plus Harvey Keitel and Anna Paquin on the red carpet outside the Odeon this evening, mercifully under clear skies. I'm sure they're having a great party tonight. Here are my final few comments on movies, plus the festival award winners and my favourite films of the festival...

The Irishman 
dir Martin Scorsese; with Robert De Niro, Al Pacino 19/US *****
A thumping cinematic epic, this film deserves to be seen on the biggest screen available as it recounts a staggering true story that stretches over half a century. In addition to the expert writing, direction and acting, this is a pungent look at how American culture and politics have become so thoroughly enmeshed with criminality. This isn't shouted loudly, but it's impossible to miss as the story centres on a singular personal perspective.

The Lodge
dir Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala; with Riley Keough, Jaeden Martell 19/UK ***
There's a staggeringly bleak sensibility to this gothic horror movie. Without being particularly scary, it's a seriously unnerving freak-out simply because it gets under the skin. Austrian filmmakers Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala throw all kinds of nasty things at the screen that add both intrigue and unease. It's skilfully shot and edited, with a terrific sense of the settings and a steady stream of inventive visual and thematic touches.

On a Magical Night [Chambre 212]
dir-scr Christophe Honore; with Chiara Mastroianni, Vincent Lacoste 19/Fr ****
French filmmaker Christophe Honore playfully uses magic (complete with Barry Manilow) to explore the nature of a long-term relationship. The story unfolds like A Christmas Carol played out as a French farce, with a collision of past, present and future that offers a jolt of insight into the way we grow and change (or not) within a relationship. It's surprisingly engaging, anchored by a wonderfully deadpan performance from Chiara Mastroianni.

Happy Birthday [Fête de Famille]
dir-scr Cedric Kahn; with Catherine Deneuve, Emmanuelle Bercot 19/Fr ***
With a real-life mixture of comedy and drama, French filmmaker Cedric Kahn explores a variety of intriguing family dynamics. It's not an each film to connect with, because just as it pulls the audience in with some warm humour it veers off somewhere rather dark and disturbing. The superb actors keep up with these mood shifts, although they can be rather jarring for the audience, especially as characters take turns being the bad guy.

LFF Awards

• Best Film: MONOS
• Documentary: WHITE RIOT
• First Feature: Mati Diop (ATLANTICS)

Rich’s Best of the Fest

1. Portrait of a Lady on Fire
2. The Irishman
3. I Lost My Body
4. The Report
5. Monsoon
6. Marriage Story
7. By the Grace of God
8. Bacurau
9. Luce
10. Monos

ALSO: The Kingmaker, Moffie, Invisible Life, Tremors, Martin Eden, Ema, Earthquake Bird, A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood, And Then We Danced, The Painted Bird.


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

LFF 10: At the end of the war

Brad Pitt invaded London to wrap up the 58th London Film Festival tonight with his World War II batttle epic Fury. He was accompanied by his entire tank team (around Pitt above: Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Peña and Jon Bernthal) as well as filmmaker David Ayer, and their press conference following the morning screening was a combination of reverence for veterans and brotherly camaraderie developed over the shooting process.

Meanwhile, journalists feel like we've been through a war since press screenings started in mid-September - averaging three or four movies a day since - but it's all over now, and hopefully we can get back to full nights of sleep. Although on Wednesday, I'm heading to Abu Dhabi to serve on the jury of their film festival 23-31 October. But that will feel like a holiday compared to London! Until then, here are some final highlights....

Fury
dir David Ayer; with Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf 14/UK ***
Writer-director Ayer makes no attempt to update the rah-rah bombast of the WWII genre, indulging in big action, the usual plot points, faux heroism and "war is hell" rhetoric. The film is sharply assembled and very nicely acted by a terrific cast, but it ultimately feels oddly pointless.

3 Hearts
dir Benoit Jacquot; with Benoit Poelvoorde, Charlotte Gainsbourg 14/Fr 1h46 ***.
A twisty love story shot and edited as if it's a dark thriller, this odd film is utterly riveting mainly because it's impossible to predict what the characters are going to do next. At its core, this is a love triangle. But the film is assembled with attention to the most insinuating, creepy detail, confident enough to allow the characters to slip in and out of sympathy along the way.

Second Coming
dir Debbie Tucker Green; with Nadine Marshall, Idris Elba 14/UK **
Beautifully shot with an attention to internal intensity, this low-budget British drama should carry an emotional wallop. But filmmaker Tucker Green infuriatingly refuses to fill in any details, leaving dialog incomplete, the plot blurry and the characters' feelings as mere hints of something bigger. The acting feels raw and very personal, but without having a clue what's happening the film remains maddeningly elusive.

President

dir Mohsen Makhmalbaf; with Misha Gomiashvili, Dachi Orvelashvili 14/Geo 1h45 ****

Now based in London, exiled Iranian filmmaker Makhmalbaf pulls no punches in this blackly comical political adventure. Set in an "unnamed country" (it was filmed in Georgia), it's a story of political oppression told from perspectives that are rarely represented on screen with this much honesty and warm humour, forcing the audience to consider the themes from unthinkable angles.