As ever, the London Film Festival plays host to dozens of films. But which ones are worthy of your attention? Here’s Michael’s round-up of worthy 25 candidates...
For film buffs residing in or around the UK's capital, the back end of October means one thing: the London Film Festival. As always, this year boasts a supreme selection of big films from the world over, even if 2010's line-up is a bit lacking in international premieres.
Anyway, chances are you haven't had a recent holiday to Toronto or the French Riviera, so we've combed through the consistently astounding programme to bring up 25 films that, if you can get your hands on tickets (no mean feat), you should check out.
Never Let Me Go
The opening night film is the new feature from Mark Romanek, noted music video auteur and director of the 2002 cult thriller, One Hour Photo. This flick is adapted from the gently disturbing novel by Kazuo Ishiguro (Remains Of The Day), and tells of a group of youths (played by Brit stars Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley and Andrew Garfield) growing up in an idyllic rural boarding school, where all is not what it seems.
The King's Speech
Those lucky Canadians also got this Tom Hooper-directed (John Adams, The Damned United), period-set drama first, but it's cooked up a bit of Oscar buzz in the process, as it won the TIFF People's Choice Award. Colin Firth stars as Prince Albert (soon to be King George VI), a Royal with a stammer who enlists the help of brusque Aussie speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), in order to fulfil his public duties. With a stellar supporting cast (Guy Pearce, Derek Jacobi, Timothy Spall, Michael Gambon, and Helena Bonham Carter - as Queen Mum-to-be!), The King's Speech looks mightily regal.
West Is West
This sequel to the 1999 comedy East Is East features mostly the same cast and production team, and comes from the pen of writer Ayub Khan-Din. This time, however, the Khan family leave the inner-city landscape of Salford for the father's home back in Pakistan. Yes, it screened at Toronto. The Hollywood Reporter praised the always ace Om Puri in the role of George Khan, noting, "It's truly one of the great comic roles of recent British films."
Black Swan
Black Swan! The new film from Darren Aronofsky! This looks fantastic. A psycho-thriller based around the pressures and trauma of ballet dancing, influenced by prime-era Roman Polanski? Starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel and Winona Ryder? Sporting a score by Clint Mansell made entirely from remixed elements of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake? Sign us up. The film opened Venice, and was screened at both Telluride and Toronto, receiving mixed reviews all over. Still. Seriously. Sign us up.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
Now, here's something odd. This Finnish flick is a wildly entertaining festive adventure, with mild horror and mysticism thrown in. A Russian-backed corporation starts excavating a mountain in Lapland, much to the chagrin of the local Finnish reindeer farmers. But soon they find something. Something terrible. Could it be the real Santa Claus? The one from Sami folklore? You know, the evil one? Packed with dark humour and mad bits of genius, Rare Exports is totally original, and definitely worth checking out.
Let Me In
Okay, it's got big boots to fill. Let The Right One In was one of the best films of last year, and this brooding vampire horror-drama was a great shot in the arm for the genre. We must admit we're apprehensive about Matt Reeves' (Cloverfield) American remake, but the cast is superb, with the two leading roles filled by Hollywood's most promising young actors, Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road) and Chloe Grace Moretz (Kick-Ass). It's also the first production by a re-vamped Hammer Films, so it should probably be supported for that fact as well. And those Torontonians seemed to like it too.
Submarine
Submarine is the debut feature from comedian/actor Richard Ayoade, adapted from the novel by Joe Dunthorne, which tells of a teenage boy's life growing up in early 80s Swansea. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the film is chock-full of cringe-y humour and borderline quirkiness. The AV Club likened it to a Wes Anderson flick, both positively and negatively, but concluded that it "gets the painful awkwardness beneath Anderson's stylization."
The American
One of our most anticipated films for this season, The American is the second feature film from Anton Corbijn, the photographer-turned-music-video-director who came out with the stunning drama-biopic Control back in 2007. This is a change of pace, being a Clooney vehicle thriller, but the combination of star wattage and visionary nous makes even a seemingly straightforward assassin plot sound promising.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Apitchatpong Weerasethakul's Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives took home the Palme d'Or from Cannes this year, and it's certainly an intriguing prospect. Stylistically complex, yet emotionally endearing, this Thai film mixes personal drama and supernatural tones as a dying farmer is visited by the memories and apparitions from throughout his life, including his dead wife, and his son, who has since become a Monkey spirit. Telegraph critic Sukhdev Sandhu called it "barely a film; more a floating world." For those with artier dispositions, this is a must-see.
The Kids Are All Right
Released in the States back in July to strong reviews, this modestly budgeted comedy-drama from Lisa Cholodenko stars Julianne Moore and Annette Bening as a couple whose children, both birthed by anonymous sperm donor, come of age and ask to find their biological father. Step up Mark Ruffalo, a free-spirited organic farmer, who starts to upset the domestic equilibrium. Frankly, we're just thrilled to see the two leads together, but the trailer suggests that this is a witty, entertaining film with some tender depth.
Blue Valentine
Michelle Williams has already had a stand-out performance this year in Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island, but it is Blue Valentine that's garnering her some Best Actress Oscar buzz (see also Meek's Cutoff, also screening at the LFF). She co-stars with Ryan Gosling in this searing drama of a marriage in the process of falling apart, which also screened at Cannes and Sundance. Taking a non-linear approach to their relationship, cutting back and forth between the beginning and the end, critics have noted its intensity, but the actors are the real draw here, with New York Magazine's Logan Hill stating, "It's hard to think of a better-cast young couple... it's a thrill to see them working together."
For more information on the London Film Festival, visit www.bfi.org.uk/lff/
