Critical Week: Keep an eye out

Working on a television crew kept me out of cinemas for much of this week, but I had a couple of days off to catch up on movies and other things. New films this week included Salem's Lot, yet another adaptation of one of my favourite Stephen King novels, although this film's approach features standard cheap scares rather than the book's brainer chills. Joaquin Phoenix is back for Todd Phillips' sequel Joker: Folie a Deux, starring with Lady Gaga in a very well-made, twisted drama about mental illness. But it's unnecessarily bleak. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Things Will Be Different
Daaaaaali • Maya and the Wave
PERHAPS AVOID:
Salem's Lot
ALL REVIEWS >

Further afield, there was Quentin Dupieux's wonderfully surreal biopic Daaaaaali!, taking an appropriately bonkers look at the iconic artist. Two low-budget American films were worth a look: All Kinds of Love is a relaxed romcom with strong characters, while Beauty Grace Malice is an offbeat thriller with engaging themes. And the doc Maya and the Wave recounts the astonishing story of surf champ Maya Gabeira with some jaw-dropping footage. I also attended a special screening of the TV series La Máquina with a lively intro from Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna. And I reviewed two live events: Frontiers: Choreographers of Canada at Sadler's Wells and Foreverland at Southwark Playhouse.

The TV series I'm working on wraps this week after shooting eight episodes, just in time for the start of the 68th London Film Festival on Wednesday. In the diary this coming week: Steve McQueen's Blitz, Sean Baker's Palme d'Or winner Anora, Ralph Fiennes in Conclave, Samuel L Jackson in The Piano Lesson and the Chinese action movie Stuntman, plus Chicos Mambo's live show Tutu. 

Bifan: Smile for the camera

With jury duty completed, I've had some time to explore beyond Bucheon, starting with taking a journey into central Seoul (about an hour by metro) on a very, very rainy Tuesday. Still, it was fun to walk around an area that's very different from Bucheon - both older and newer, with cool shops and restaurants packed in tiny, winding streets. Then the juries were taken on a day out for an archery experience that was a lot of fun - learning the history and tradition, training and then competing - followed by an amazing festival dinner. I also took the morning to head back over into Seoul and walk around the main palace, this time in blazing sunshine. And of course, I'm watching films as well. Here are two more I saw earlier, plus two more Japanese titles...

Smoking Causes Coughing [Fumer Fait Tousser]
dir-scr Quentin Dupieux; with Gilles Lellouche, Vincent Lacoste 22/France ***.
Leave it to demented genius Quentin Dupieux to offer a course correction for the superhero genre, producing this wry comedy in the style of a cheesy 1970s TV series, starting with some riotously exaggerated violence. Consistently amusing scenes are underlined with silly details, clunky tech and a surprisingly heartfelt emotion. In the end, it feels a bit slight and corny, but its considerable charm is difficult to shake... FULL REVIEW >

Evil Dead Rise
dir-scr Lee Cronin; with Alyssa Sutherland, Lily Sullivan 23/US ***
As the horror franchise returns, writer-director Lee Cronin sidesteps plot and characters to focus on creating the grisliest movie imaginable. It's an approach that keeps the audience squirming at each mind-bogglingly awful thing that happens to a bunch of relatively normal people minding their own business. Genre fans will enjoy the yuckiness, but the connection to the other movies is tenuous, and there's not much else to it... FULL REVIEW >

Life of Mariko in Kabukicho

dir Shinzo Katayama, Eiji Uchida; with Sairi Ito, Yutaka Takenouchi 22/Japan ****

Freewheeling energy propels this lively Japanese movie through a series of outrageous scenarios, as a large ensemble of characters weave in and out of each others' lives. Action, comedy, romance, drama and sci-fi are stirred into the mix, creating a riotously entertaining vibe from start to finish, even when things turn violent or dark. Set out as a series of episodes in the life of a sparky young woman and the people in her Tokyo neighbourhood, the film endearingly gets under the skin.

Egoist 
dir Daishi Matsunaga; with Ryohei Suzuki, Hio Miyazawa 22/Japan ***.

An understated, slice-of-life approach both adds to the emotional depth of this Japanese drama and leaves it feeling somewhat familiar. Director-cowriter Daishi Matsunaga tells the story with sensitivity, taking on big events and some surprising events without even a hint of melodramatics. What remains is an engaging exploration of unexpected relationships, most notably how love can be expressed through selflessness. And the story reveals this in some very moving ways.

Critical Week: On an adventure

It's been another very warm week in London, which has taken its toll on movie box office numbers as we spend rather a lot more time outdoors than usual. I haven't had any theatre to cover, but the movies keep rolling in, with yet another huge blockbuster arriving like clockwork over the next few months. Coming next week, Harrison Ford is back for a sixth adventure in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which was screened for London press earlier this week. It's a hugely crowd-pleasing action romp, nonstop fun and unapologetic about its silly plot. Jennifer Lawrence gets to flex her comical skills in No Hard Feelings, an enjoyably rude comedy with a sweet centre.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
The Stroll • Sublime
Desperate Souls, Dark City
No Hard Feelings
ALL REVIEWS >

From France, Quentin Dupieux returns with yet another absurdly brilliant comedy: Smoking Causes Coughing is a cleverly bonkers take on superhero movies. The British indie drama To Nowhere is beautifully shot, mixing moving character layers into a simple premise. From Japan, The Tunnel of Summer, the Exit of Goodbyes is a thoughtful and beautifully animated drama about two teens who have a fantastical journey,. And I also saw two documentaries: Name Me Lawand is the moving story of a deaf teen from Iraq who only learns to communicate as a refugee in Britain, and The Last Rider allows cycling champion Greg Lemond to narrate his life story, most notably his incredible comeback after a shooting accident.

I have a few more films to watch before I fly to Seoul next week to begin service on the jury at the 27th Bifan: Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. Look for regular updates here.

FrightFest: Scary monsters

The 23rd FrightFest is running this weekend in central London, scaring the life out of happy moviegoers. I tend to only catch a handful of films each year, and here's my selection this time round, starting with one of the best films I've seen all year...

Piggy [Cerdita]
dir-scr Carlota Pereda; with Laura Galan, Richard Holmes 22/Sp ****.
Bright, sunny and blackly humorous, this small-town Spanish drama takes an unblinking look at bullying and the complex emotions it evokes. Even more than a fiendishly clever approach to a serious topic, the film is an audacious genre mashup, mixing a high school comedy with a tense horror movie. Writer-director Carlota Pereda has a terrific eye for detail, and notable skill as a storyteller who cares about her characters.

Fall
dir Scott Mann; with Grace Caroline Currey, Virginia Gardner 22/US ***.
Shamelessly playing on its vertiginous premise, this adventure thriller keeps us in a state of nerve-wracking suspense right from the start. We're so frazzled that we never mind that many of the scares are gratuitous, the filmmaking is painfully obvious, and the continuity is more than a little iffy. This is a nonstop exercise in the most basic fear, and it's feels almost exhilarating when we survive it... REVIEW >

Burial
dir-scr Ben Parker; with Charlotte Vega, Tom Felton 22/UK ***
Set at the end of WWII, this mystery thriller generates a sense of secrecy at every step. It's packed with skirmishes that are nasty but not always easy to follow, while the story structure moves from one incident to the next without much overall momentum. It's sharp enough to hold the interest, but it lacks a compelling point of view, relying on intrigue rather than any human element.

Hypochondriac
dir-scr Addison Heimann; with Zach Villa, Devon Graye 22/US ****
Opening with a caption noting that it's "based on a real breakdown", this psychological horror immediately gets under the skin. Writer-director Addison Heimann creates a superbly subjective perspective, using inventive camerawork, editing and effects to explore the central character's thoughts. It's a terrific approach to internalised terror, which continually grounds mind-based delusions in earthy authenticity. This adds emotional angles that make the movie both gripping and bleakly moving... REVIEW >

Incredible But True [Incroyable Mais Vrai]
dir-scr Quentin Dupieux; with Alain Chabat, Lea Drucker 22/Fr ***.
French filmmaker Quentin Dupieux delights in telling wildly bonkers stories with a straight face. This lightly farcical tale involves time travel but delights in never quite explaining it. But while the premise is blatantly silly, with several riotously funny scenes along the way, the film has a warm heart that brings its characters to life. So while the central point feels somewhat simplistic, it's an engaging little romp.

Deep Fear
dir Gregory Beghin; with Sofia Lesaffre, Victor Meutelet 22/Fr ***
Earthy and confident, this French thriller maintains a lightly comical tone while layering in the usual hints that something horrific is brewing. This includes a standard randomly violent opening scene and a freak-out dream before the plot even begins, sending four young people on a day out that looks intriguing, fun and of course more than a little harrowing. It's a sharply well-made movie with a seriously vicious streak.

The Leech
dir-scr Eric Pennycoff; with Graham Skipper, Jeremy Gardner 22/US **.
There's a deranged sense of humour in this black comedy, which places an upstanding priest on a slippery slope to hell. Writer-director Eric Pennycoff encourages the cast to go for heightened performances that play up the in-your-face characters and dialog. As the story continues, it gets relentlessly darker, spiralling through swirly dream sequences before revealing some bleak truths about people who aren't particularly easy to empathise with.

Orchestrator of Storms: The Fantastique World of Jean Rollin
dir-scr Dima Ballin, Kat Ellinger; with Veronique D-Travers, Brigitte Lahaie 22/US ****
Brisk and packed with detail, this documentary traces the life of a little-known filmmaker who told poetic stories about dreams and memory, often using horror and sex. Critics dismissed his work as exploitation, but scholars now see his roots in the art world and his important contribution to the French New Wave. Even if it's overlong, this is an essential doc about a rarely explored side of cinematic history.

These and other full reviews will be linked at Shadows FRIGHTFEST page >