LFF: Smile for the camera

Into the second week of the 67th London Film Festival, the star-free red carpets continue to play out every night in front of the Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank. The paparazzi look rather bored, so I've been chatting to them as I go by, finding out which of the film's crew members are in town, and perhaps some B-list celebs as well. Then I spot an Oscar-nominated A-lister incognito in the crowd and say hi; she's been enjoying movies as an audience member, adeptly honouring the actors strike by avoiding the cameras. Word has it that most stars have a bag packed so that once the strike is over they can rush off to support their movie projects. But in the meantime, we still have the movies. Here are a few more highlights...

Priscilla
dir-scr Sofia Coppola; with Cailee Spaeny, Jacob Elordi 23/US ***.
Maintaining a sharp perspective from start to finish, Sofia Coppola explores the relationship between Priscilla and Elvis Presley with strikingly intimacy. The film digs under the surface to explore much more than the familiar story of a teenager who married the world's most famous singer. The anecdotal structure sometimes feels a bit jarring, and the ending is abrupt, but the narrative offers a remarkably involving exploration of gender politics... FULL REVIEW >

Nyad
dir Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin; with Annette Bening, Jodie Foster 23/US ****
Powerfully involving, this true drama is shot in a riveting documentary style with the addition of real-life footage. It also features fabulous roles that Annette Bening and Jodie Foster can properly sink their talented teeth into. Without over-egging the story's inherent adventure elements too much, directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin let the events play out authentically, and the engaging characters make it both gripping and unmissable.

Foe
dir Garth Davis; with Saoirse Ronan, Paul Mescal 23/Aus ***
Beautifully shot, this lightly futuristic romantic thriller centres tightly on three characters who are skilfully played with intense emotionality. But filmmaker Garth Davis tries to be tricky with a plot that simply doesn't hold water. Explanations come far too late to put anything that happens into context, so watching the film is an exercise in frustration. Even so, it has some important things to say about curiosity and compassion... FULL REVIEW >

The Lost Boys [Le Paradis]
dir Zeno Graton; with Khalil Gharbia, Julien De Saint Jean 23/Bel ****
Set in a juvenile detention facility, this sensitive Belgian drama traces a romance between two teen boys with hushed sensitivity. It's a beautifully observed story that unfolds in earthy and sometimes tender interaction, skilfully directed by Zeno Graton to put us into the mindset of a powerfully engaging central character. And it manages to be authentic, hopeful and even occasionally grim without ever resorting to prison movie cliches.

Totem
dir-scr Lila Aviles; with Naima Senties, Montserrat Maranon 23/Mex ****
Loose and authentically chaotic, this Mexican drama features refreshing rhythms of family life over a pivotal day. Filmmaker Lila Aviles is an expert observer of human behaviour, filling the house with fully formed characters who have their own preoccupations and little sense of allowing others their personal space. The wonderfully open-handed filmmaking constantly reveals things about people who are both connected and disconnected at the same time.

Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry
dir Elene Naveriani; with Eka Chavleishvili, Temiko Chichinadze 23/Geo ****
With deadpan charm, this Georgian film opens with a woman picking blackberries on the edge of a riverbank when a blackbird distracts her and she falls, imagining her death below. Filmmaker Elene Naveriani maintains a quiet, slow-burning vibe that ripples with underlying humour and tensions. The characters are wonderfully real, while the film has a colourful, sardonic Kaurismaki-like quality that's thoroughly winning. And the underlying message is hugely empowering.

All full festival reviews will be linked to Shadows' LFF PAGE >

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C R I T I C A L  W E E K

In addition to lots of festival films, this week I also saw Laura Linney, Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates in the engaging and pointed Irish comedy-drama The Miracle Club, the quirky and dark British comedy Mind-Set, and enjoyably cheesy voyeurism nastiness in 15 Cameras. Films this coming week include several more LFF films, the animated musical sequel Trolls Band Together. the girls' comedy Bottoms, and Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie in Eileen. Then I'll be on a plane to visit family in California for a couple of weeks.

Raindance: Get distracted

The 28th Raindance Film Festival kicked off last night with a very small gala screening of the David Bowie biopic Stardust, starring Johnny Flynn (it's not showing to the press until the end of the festival). This year's event will include some live screenings plus a lot of virtual ones. Like the recent London Film Fest, I'll be watching everything at home and writing regular updates here. Here are the first two, plus my usual report on the past week...

A Dim Valley

dir-scr Brandon Colvin; with Zach Weintraub, Whitmer Thomas 20/US 1h32 ***.

There's a loose stoner vibe to this wilderness-set comedy, a gently loping film that generates lots of smiles and a few solid laughs. While nothing much seems to be happening, the way the characters so aimlessly interact is often amusing, as they simply neglect to express what they want, either personally or professionally. It's deliberately quirky, like a joke that's funnier when you're inebriated. But it runs deep.

This Is Cristina [Ella Es Cristina]

dir-scr Gonzalo Maza; with Mariana Derderiaan, Paloma Salas 19/Chile 1h22 ****

With a series of seemingly random scenes shot in a striking monochrome, this clever Chilean comedy-drama traces the rollercoaster trajectory of a friendship between two women who seem unwilling to grow up and take responsibility for their lives. With his directing debut, gifted writer-producer Gonzalo Meza (A Fantastic Woman) cleverly weaves together a coming-of-age story that hinges on this connection. It feels crisp and light, but carries a strong kick.

NB. My anchor page for Raindance is HERE and full reviews will appear in between these daily blog entries. Much more to come...

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C R I T I C A L   W E E K

BEST OUT THIS WEEK: 

Song Without a Name 

Wolfwalkers • African Apocalypse

The Painter and the Thief

FULL REVIEWS >

I finally caught up with Sofia Coppola's On the Rocks this week, one of my favourite films of the year, a deceptively simple comedy with the perfect double act of Bill Murray and Rashida Jones. I was less excited to catch Ben Wheatley's remake of Rebecca with Armie Hammer, Lily James and Kristin Scott Thomas. It's beautifully made, but adds little to Hitchcock's iconic classic. The Secret Garden is a better remake, with a great cast and artful touches. And there were two guilty pleasures: Dylan O'Brian in the surprisingly fresh zombie romp Love and Monsters and Omari Hardwick in the horror freak-out Spell. This past week I also saw: Claes Bang in the intriguing The Burnt Orange Heresy; Jaeden Martell in the cleverly involving The True Adventures of Wolfboy; the artful British drama Philophobia; the action-packed Train to Busan sequel Peninsula; the absolutely stunning Peruvian drama Song Without a Name; the provocative Argentine drama Young Hunter; and the superbly observed doc Boys State.

Aside from Raindance films, This coming week I'll be watching the London street-cat sequel A Christmas Gift From Bob, Eva Green in Proxima, Andrea Riseborough in Luxor, the rom-com Call Me Brother, Jack Lowden in Kindred, Iranian refugee drama Love Child and the Filipino drama 2 Cool 2 Be 4 Gotten.

Critical Week: Say your prayers

As another heatwave settles in over London, I had two film-free days this week. First was the baseball event in Hyde Park (see the post below), and the other was the Critics' Circle annual summer party on the gorgeous roof terrace at Picturehouse Central. As for films, I really enjoyed Sofia Coppola's remake of The Beguiled, but then I love her loose filmmaking style and the way she lets her actors bring out unexpected depths of character. At the other end of the cinematic spectrum, the franchise continues with Cars 3, the fifth (don't forget the Planes movies) in the series about a world populated by vehicles but not humans. The set-up is just as odd, but the movie has an earthy simplicity to it.

Much more offbeat, Bong Joon Ho's Okja is a witty, involving action adventure with very dark themes about globalisation and sharp performances from Tilda Swinton (times two), Jake Gyllenhaal and Paul Dano. Also worth a look is It Comes at Night, an inventively complex horror movie starring Joel Edgerton. It's set after some kind of undefined apocalypse but heavily reminiscent of the world today. Hickok is a cheesy Western tracing the story of the iconic historical figure, nicely played by a beefy Luke Hemsworth. And Do You Take This Man is another thoughtful drama starring Anthony Rapp, set around a pre-wedding dinner at which the usual personal issues are brought to the surface.

This coming week, screenings include Terrence Malick's Song to Song, Sally Hawkins and Ethan Hawke in Maudie, the Aussie sequel A Few Less Men, the horror thriller Killing Ground and the fact-based drama Dark Night.

Festival Days: Where are we?

The East End Film Festival moves into its second week with a remarkably ambitious programme screening at cinemas all over East London. Highlights for me will be attending the world premieres of two British indies: Simon Savory's Bruno & Earlene Go to Vegas (pictured) and Daniel Audritt's The Brightest Colours Make Grey. On Wednesday evening I caught up with Ben Wheatley's latest head trip A Field in England, which is every bit as mind-boggling as expected.

Meanwhile, the 67th Edinburgh International Film Festival  wrapped up over the weekend, and now I have the excitement of catching up with those films as they are released in the UK. I've managed to see one of them this week - Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring had a mixed reception at Cannes, and I can see why: it's probably a bit too timely and prescient for most critics. I found it a clever, insightful exploration of today's fame-driven youth culture.

Other films I've caught up with this week include the animated action-comedy Turbo, about a souped-up speedy snail (comments are embargoed on this one). Gerard Butler's surfing drama Chasing Mavericks is a blanded-down true story that at least features plenty of terrific surfing action. Spanish filmmaker Pablo Berger's remarkable Blancanieves will struggle to overcome comparisons to The Artist (it's also silent, black and white) and Hollywood's two takes on Snow White last year. But this is a skilfully well-told story that's essential viewing due to its gorgeous emotional resonance. Renny Harlin's The Dyatlov Pass Incident will also suffer from comparisons to The Blair Witch Project. Despite a dodgy climax, this icy thriller is actually a better film, and it's based on a fascinating true mystery from 1959 Russia (plus added present-day fiction).

The next big movies screening to London critics will be Guillermo Del Toro's alien-invasion epic Pacific Rim and Simon Pegg and Nick Frost's apocalyptic pub crawl comedy The World's End.