Critical Week: Let's talk about love

Screenings are few and far between at the moment, with most smaller releases running scared from the single big movie that's either coming out this week or is still dominating the box office. But there are still some good things out there - both in cinemas and on streaming services - even as the blockbusters have been merely ok so far this summer. One of the most endearing films of the year is Billy Porter's comedy-drama Anything's Possible, a teen romance that's packed with heart and just enough realistic edge. And the newcomer leads, Eva Reign and Abubakr Ali (above), are terrific. Meanwhile, this week's big release is the animated DC League of Super-Pets, a comically entertaining adventure packed with genuinely smart gags delivered by a scene-stealing vocal cast, even if the superhero formula feels as stale as ever.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Hit the Road • Sharp Stick
Ali & Ava • Hypochondriac
ALL REVIEWS >

More intriguing was The Score, an inventive genre mashup starring the terrific Will Poulter, Naomi Ackie and Johnny Flynn that features romance, comedy, violence and musical numbers. Juliette Binoche stars in master filmmaker Claire Denis' Both Sides of the Blade, a boldly complex French drama about relationships and regret. And the horror thriller Hypochondriac finds some original, and deeply unsettling, things to say about mental illness while properly freaking us out.

Screenings remain thin next week, but I'll be watching Brad Pitt in Bullet Train, Charlotte Rampling in Juniper, the Predator spin-off Prey, the animated adventure Luck and the refugee doc Fadia's Tree.

Critical Week: Smiles everybody

Screenings continue to be a mixed bag of current releases and awards contenders. Higher profile films this week include Javier Bardem in the Spanish film The Good Boss, a blackly comical satire about the tension between a boss and his employees. And the true World War II adventure Operation Mincemeat has a first-rate cast featuring Colin Firth, Matthew Macfadyen, Kelly Macdonald, Penelope Wilton, Jason Isaacs and Johnny Flynn.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Flee • C'mon C'mon
The Hand of God
Boxing Day • Final Account
ALL REVIEWS >

The main reason why I saw so few films this week: I spend eight hours watching The Beatles: Get Back, Peter Jackson's hugely engaging documentary made from footage unseen for 50 years. It's essential for fans. Also a bit off the beaten path were the thoughtful and provocative Canadian drama I Am Syd Stone, addressing issues of sexuality in show business; Andrea Arnold's experiential doc Cow, following the life of a farm animal in a way that's riveting; the World War II doc Final Account, interviewing Germans who were children when the Nazis came to power; and the shorts collection The French Boys features five very strong dramas.

Coming up this next week, I will be watching Steven Spielberg's remake of the musical West Side Story, Bradley Cooper in Nightmare Alley, Lea Seydoux in France, the horror thriller Agnes, the drama Famous, the pantomime on film Cinderella and the shorts collection The French Boys 2.

Raindance: Use your voice

The 28th Raindance Film Festival came to an end this weekend, after making much of its programme available for free online. Although the closing film was cancelled due to England's new lockdown. I managed to see 21 films this year, a slight uptick on previous years, perhaps because all screenings were virtual, but also because this year's festival didn't have the usual clash with London Film Festival. There are four final highlights below, plus this year's award winners. Note that Stardust was the festival's opening film, and Thou Shalt Not Hate is my best of the fest...

Stardust

dir Gabriel Range; with Johnny Flynn, Jena Malone 20/UK ***.

There's a loose, scruffy charm to this biopic about a pivotal moment in David Bowie's life. Shot 1970s-style, and emphasising how tricky it is for a flashy British artist to make it in the United States, the film is likeable and witty, with lively characters and terrific attention to detail. Filmmaker Gabriel Range gets too ambitious with story structure, but this is an involving movie that has a strong impact... FULL REVIEW > 

Thou Shalt Not Hate [Non Odiare]

dir Mauro Mancini; with Alessandro Gassmann, Sara Serraiocco 20/It ****

Skilfully shot and edited, this involving Italian drama takes a complex approach to the rise in right-wing hatred across the world, holding the focus tightly on a very personal story. Director-cowriter Mauro Mancini keeps the tensions simmering all the way through the film, creating suspense over whether this will erupt into a violent clash or a chance for redemption. And the complex emotions gurgling underneath make it darkly involving... FULL REVIEW > 

FOMO Fear of Missing Out

dir Attila Hartung; with Yorgosz Goletsas, Gergely Bouquet 19/Hun ***

Fast and snappy, this heavily pointed Hungarian drama is shot like an MTV show from around 1990, with quick-cut, hand-held scenes of pretty young people at raucous parties. It's also a vicious satire of lad culture that leads to a provocative, unsettling drama about assault. So while the film feels more than a little melodramatic, it's an important topic dealt with in a story that continually challenges accepted attitudes... FULL REVIEW > 

Drag Kids

dir-scr Megan Wennberg; with Stephan Hirst, Jason Kerr 19/Can ****

This observational documentary takes a look at pre-teens who love to perform in drag on-stage. Filmmaker Megan Wennberg follows four children from three countries as they travel to Montreal to perform together at Pride and compete at a ball. This gives the movie a terrific story structure, watching they plan, practice and develop a hilarious camaraderie. They also begin to understand the positive impact of drag culture on global society... FULL REVIEW > 

A W A R D S

• 
  Film of the Festival: NOT TO BE UNPLEASANT BUT WE NEED TO HAVE A SERIOUS TALK
• Spirit of the Festival: THE HAT
• Raindance Icons: Jude Law and Sally Hawkins
• International Feature: FORCE OF HABIT
• UK Feature: HE DREAMS OF GIANTS
• Documentary Feature: THE STATE OF TEXAS VS MELISSA
• Music Documentary: TOPOWA! NEVER GIVE UP
• Discovery Award: Antonio Lukich (MY THOUGHTS ARE SILENT)
• Performance: Johnny Flynn (STARDUST)
• Director: Milcho Manchevski (WILLOW)
• Screenplay: FORCE OF HABIT
• Cinematography: Tim Cragg (THE GREAT GREEN WALL)

NB. My anchor page for Raindance is HERE and all of the full reviews are linked there. And I'll add more over the coming months as I see them.

Critical Week: Do a little dance

Well, the Oscars have certainly shaken things up in recent years, and Sunday's ceremony brought some wonderful surprises, handing top honours to Bong Joon Ho's masterful film Paradise. If you've seen the film, it's not difficult to understand why it connected so well with voters. By contrast, this week's big screening was the resolutely silly Sonic the Hedgehog, offering Jim Carrey a chance to hilariously play around with both wacky wordplay and full-bodied physicality. It may be slight, but it's an entertaining romp.

There were three films that honed in on a female perspective. The latest adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma stars Anya Taylor-Joy as a young woman manipulating the love lives of those around her. It's snarky and skilfully made, a perfect film for Valentine's Day. Misbehaviour stars Keira Knightley and Jessie Buckley in the terrific true story of women's rights activists who disrupted the Miss World contest in 1970 London. And from Ireland, Rose Plays Julie is a moody, wrenching tale of a young woman (Ann Skelly) who connects with her birth mother (Orla Brady), unearthing a haunting secret.

By extreme contrast, The Misogynists stars Dylan Baker in a rampaging performance as a Trump supporter in a hotel room on election night 2016. It's like a particularly pointed, provocative one-act play, and leaves the audience with plenty to think about. From Germany, Orpheus' Song is a quietly involving romantic drama about two men having a magical (or maybe drunken) experience while on holiday in Greece. And then there was this controversial doc...

---

The Edge of Democracy
dir-scr Petra Costa
with Petra Costa, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Dilma Rousseff, Michel Temer, Jair Bolsonaro, Sergio Moro, Eduardo Cunha, Aecio Neves, Jean Wyllys, Marisa Leticia Lula da Silva
release Br/US/UK 19.Jun.19
19/Brazil Netflix 2h01 ****

I missed this doc when it was released last summer, and wanted to watch it before the Oscars, as it was the only nominated film I hadn't seen. The timing couldn't be more chilling, as the film outlines the step-by-step dismantling of the democratic system in Brazil by politicians who use the judicial system to both cover up corruption and convict opponents with crimes they haven't actually committed, in order to remove them from office. All while the nation's population divides itself into two camps that scream irrationally at each other. The parallels with what happened last week in Washington DC are downright horrifying.

Never attempting impartiality, the film is a first-person account by filmmaker Petra Costa (in a mumbly voiceover that's both eerily dispassionate and often lost in the sound mix). She's expressing her her views on Brazil's political turbulence over the past half-century, as military dictatorship gave way to democracy controlled by the wealthy. Then came Lula, the working-class president who brought fairness to the society, opportunities for the poor, and approval ratings higher than anyone in the world. When he passed the torch to his successor Dilma, the wealthy class suddenly cracked down, twisting an investigation into corruption to set up both Dilma and Lula on charges that were tenuous at best.

Costa pays attention to detail, which makes it clear what actually went on here. Her cameras have terrific access to these people, capturing private moments that are interwoven with the news footage to offer a bigger picture. Sometimes this dense approach a little overwhelming, while her comments about personal connections feel distracting. But even if it's one-sided, there's a bracing sense of fairness how events are recounted with news footage and audio recordings. There's no doubt about what has actually going on.

Which is perhaps what makes the film resonate so sharply. There's Boris Johnson shamelessly lying to the British people (and perhaps to himself) about the true impact of leaving the European Union. There's Donald Trump championing his own victory with a stream of false statistics and manipulative stories even before the Senate voted to ignore their duty to the US Constitution. There's a quote late in this documentary from Ancient Greece, that democracy is only working if the wealthy feel threatened. On the other hand, when the wealthy are threatened, they have the power to suspend democracy. And to brainwash the people into cheering them on.

9.Feb.20 • Sundance

---

This coming week I have screenings of Harrison Ford in a new adaptation of Jack London's The Call of the Wild, Rose Byrne in the comedy Like a Boss, Rosamund Pike in the Marie Curie biopic Radioactive and the psychological thriller You Go to My Head, plus a couple of nights at the theatre, two press launches and an awards ceremony.