IRIS PRIZE DOCUMENTARY FILM FUND

Organisers of Iris Prize LGBT+ Film Festival have today (Wednesday 4 May 2022) announced details of the five shortlisted projects through to the final stage to be the first film commissioned by the new Iris Prize Documentary Film Finance Fund.

The Film Fund is sponsored by FROOT and Aberystwyth University who have committed to invest £20,000 in the final film. The purpose of the fund is to support queer British documentary filmmakers – with a particular emphasis on those from underrepresented groups.

THE FIVE SHORTLISTED FILMS ARE:

The Urban Wolf
Cherish Oteka

Creative documentary that follows a Black and queer person as they challenge society’s and their family’s conditional tolerance of them.

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A Chinese love story (working title)
Shanshan Chen

Qiuyan, a Chinese LGBT+ activist in London, fights David’s battle against the goliath of bureaucracy to bring her girlfriend Bling from China while trying to reconcile with her estranged family.

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The Cashmere Kids
Tin Vlainić and Brian Mullin

Long before Queer Eye, the ‘Cashmere Kids’ were a carefree cleaning company run by gay men in the 1970s, redoing London’s finest interiors whilst improvising new lives of sexual liberation.

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Sibling
Jay Bedwani

A character led observational documentary following three LGBTQIA+ skate enthusiasts as they navigate male dominated skateparks in the UK.

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Some Girls Hate Dresses!
Somina ‘Mena’ Fombo

A nostalgic look into the black British tomboys from yesteryear told through the lens of queer black women who wore the label with pride throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s.

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Streaming on Hulu June 3...

Set in the iconic Pines, Andrew Ahn's FIRE ISLAND is an unapologetic, modern day rom-com showcasing a diverse, multicultural examination of queerness and romance. Inspired by the timeless pursuits from Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice, the story centers around two best friends (Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang) who set out to have a legendary summer adventure with the help of cheap rosé and their cadre of eclectic friends.

Cast: Joel Kim Booster, Bowen Yang, Conrad Ricamora, and Margaret Cho

Here's a joyful wee tune...

‘Purple Zone’ is taken from Soft Cell’s new album, *Happiness not included, out on 6th May

Here are the first round winners:

Outstanding Film – Wide Release

Eternals (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) (WINNER)
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (Amazon Studios)
The Mitchells vs. the Machines (Netflix)
Tick, Tick … Boom! (Netflix)
West Side Story (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Outstanding Film – Limited Release

Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics) (WINNER)
Breaking Fast (Vertical Entertainment)
Gossamer Folds (Indican Pictures)
The Obituary of Tunde Johnson (Wolfe Video)
Plan B (Hulu)
Port Authority (Momentum Pictures)
Shiva Baby (Utopia)
Swan Song (Magnolia Pictures)
Tu Me Manques (Dark Star Pictures)
Twilight’s Kiss (Strand Releasing)

Outstanding Documentary

Changing the Game (Hulu) (WINNER)
“Cured” Independent Lens (PBS)
Flee (NEON)
The Lady and the Dale (HBO)
The Legend of the Underground (HBO)
No Ordinary Man (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
Nuclear Family (HBO)
Pier Kids POV (PBS)
Pray Away (Netflix)
Pride (FX)

Outstanding Comedy Series

Saved by the Bell (Peacock) (WINNER)
Dickinson (Apple TV+)
Gentefied (Netflix)
Love, Victor (Hulu)
The Other Two (HBO Max)
Sex Education (Netflix)
Shrill (Hulu)
Special (Netflix)
Twenties (BET)
Work in Progress (Showtime)

Outstanding New TV Series

Hacks (HBO Max) (WINNER)
4400 (The CW)
Chucky (Syfy/USA Network)
Harlem (Prime Video)
The Long Call (BritBox)
The Sex Lives of College Girls (HBO Max)
Sort Of (HBO Max)
With Love (Prime Video)
Y: The Last Man (FX)
Yellowjackets (Showtime)

Outstanding TV Movie

Single All the Way (Netflix) (WINNER)
The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls (Hallmark Channel)
The Fear Street Trilogy (Netflix)
Nash Bridges (USA Network)
Under the Christmas Tree (Lifetime)

Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series

It’s A Sin (HBO Max) (WINNER)
Dopesick (Hulu)
Halston (Netflix)
Little Birds (Starz)
Love Life (HBO Max)
Master of None Presents: Moments in Love (Netflix)
Rurangi (Hulu)
Station Eleven (HBO Max)
Vigil (Peacock)
The White Lotus (HBO)

Outstanding Reality Program

RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1) (WINNER – TIE)
We’re Here (HBO) (WINNER – TIE)
12 Dates of Christmas (HBO Max)
Dancing With the Stars (ABC)
Family Karma (Bravo)
I Am Jazz (TLC)
Legendary (HBO Max)
MTV’s Following: Bretman Rock (MTV)
Queer Eye (Netflix)
The Voice (NBC)

Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist

Lily Rose, Stronger Than I Am (Big Loud Records/Back Blocks Music/Republic Records) (WINNER)
Arlo Parks, Collapsed in Sunbeams (Transgressive Records)
Asiahn, The Interlude (SinceThe80s/Motown Records)
girl in red, if i could make it go quiet (AWAL)
Jake Wesley Rogers, Pluto (Facet/Warner Records)
Japanese Breakfast, Jubilee (Dead Oceans)
Joy Oladokun, in defense of my own happiness (Amigo Records/Verve Forecast/Republic Records)
Lauren Jauregui, Prelude (Attunement Records/AWAL)
Lucy Dacus, Home Video (Matador Records)
VINCINT, There Will Be Tears (Vincint Cannady)

Outstanding Video Game

Life Is Strange: True Colors (Deck Nine Games/Square Enix) (WINNER)
Boyfriend Dungeon (Kitfox Games)
Far Cry 6 (Ubisoft)
The Gardener and the Wild Vines (Finite Reflection Studios)
Kena: Bridge of Spirits (Ember Lab)
Psychonauts 2 (Double Fine/Xbox Game Studios)
Rainbow Billy: The Curse of the Leviathan (ManaVoid Entertainment/Skybound Games)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege (Ubisoft)
Unpacking (Witch Beam /Humble Games)
UNSIGHTED (Studio Pixel Punk /Humble Games)

Outstanding Comic Book

Crush & Lobo, written by Mariko Tamaki (DC Comics) (WINNER)
Aquaman: The Becoming, written by Brandon Thomas (DC Comics)
Barbalien: Red Planet, written by Tate Brombal, Jeff Lemire (Dark Horse Comics)
The Dreaming: Waking Hours, written by G. Willow Wilson (DC Comics)
Guardians of the Galaxy, written by Al Ewing (Marvel Comics)
Harley Quinn: The Animated Series – The Eat. Bang! Kill. Tour, written by Tee Franklin (DC Comics)
Killer Queens, written by David M. Booher (Dark Horse Comics)
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra, written by Alyssa Wong (Marvel Comics)
Superman: Son of Kal-El, written by Tom Taylor (DC Comics)
Wynd, written by James Tynion IV (BOOM! Studios) 

Outstanding Original Graphic Novel/Anthology

Cheer Up! Love and Pompoms, written by Crystal Frasier (Oni Press) (WINNER)
DC Pride [anthology] (DC Comics)
Eighty Days, written by A.C. Esguerra (Archaia/BOOM! Studios)
The Girl From the Sea, written by Molly Ostertag (Graphix/Scholastic)
Girl Haven, written by Lilah Sturges (Oni Press)
I Am Not Starfire, written by Mariko Tamaki (DC Comics)
Marvel’s Voices: Pride [anthology] (Marvel Comics)
Renegade Rule, written by Ben Kahn, Rachel Silverstein (Dark Horse Comics)
The Secret to Superhuman Strength, written by Alison Bechdel (Mariner Books/HMH)
Shadow Life, written by Hiromi Goto (First Second/Macmillan)

Outstanding Magazine Overall Coverage

The Advocate (WINNER)
Entertainment Weekly
People
POZ
Variety

Special Recognition

All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson [filmed reading + performance]
“Alok Vaid-Menon” 4D with Demi Lovato (Candence13/OBB Sound/SB Projects)
CODED: The Hidden Love of J.C. Leyendecker (Paramount+)
Jeopardy! Champion Amy Schneider
The Laverne Cox Show (Shondaland Audio/iHeartMedia)
Life Out Loud with LZ Granderson (ABC News)
Outsports’ Coverage of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics

SPANISH-LANGUAGE CATEGORIES

Outstanding Spanish-Language Scripted Television Series

Maricón Perdido (HBO Max) (WINNER)
#Luimelia (Atresplayer Premium)
Manual Para Galanes (Pantaya)
Pequeñas Victorias (Prime Video)
Todo lo otro (HBO Max)

Outstanding Spanish-Language TV Journalism

“Orgullo LGBTQ: 52 Años de Lucha y Evolución” (Telemundo 47) (WINNER)
“Grupo Firme en Contra del Acoso” Despierta América (Univision)
“El Mes del Orgullo” (CNN en Español)
“Impacto Positivo: Bamby Salcedo” Primer Impacto (Univision)
“Preocupa Exclusión de Niñas Trans en Equipos Femeninos” Hoy Día (Telemundo)

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It that fabulous time of the year...BFI Flare 2022, in-person and on-lie.

Unfortunately, we can't be there in-person...but Flare has provided us with a mountain of films to watch and review.

This is our schedule...subject to many changes. And, we aim to watch every short film programme...you should too...they're FREE! 

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Day 1...

Boy Culture
by Q. Allan Brocka

We're not going to review this as a web series...because, that would do it a gross injustice.

We saw this as a feature film...and, a mighty fine one it is too!

It's been 15 years since the original production...'X' is older, probably not wiser, a bit jaded and much, much more cynical... those intervening years have certainly put the grit and the wit into the writers' pens.

The returning actors are less edgier...simply because, that's what time does to people. In walks Chayce [with a 'Y', played to-the-hilt by Jason Caceres], he's soc-med savvy, preposterously peppy...and, young, full of cum-and-get-it babies. Quite the he opposite of 'X' - yet, Chayce-with-a-Y becomes his pimp[le]-in-crime on-line. As unlikely as it sounds, this young leading the old, it works. And, in so doing, toppling that old cliché: You can't teach an old dog new tricks - on its head!

Derek Magyar's stone-faced X is deadpan perfect...when his tears well-up, ours do too...it just seems to be such a heartfelt performance.

We're not going to single out any of the 'tricks' - each one has its own merit. Laugh, cry, relate, celebrate, empathise...and, realise...that some people think entirely differently from you, yourself. Now, that's what we call writing!

Kudos to Q. Allan Brocka and Matthew Rettenmund...marvellously matured, mesmerizingly entertaining, madly emotional...brought to you with...with punch, paunch and power!

Roll on the next instalment.

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Charli XCX: Alone Together
by Bradley Bell & Pablo Jones-Soler

Unlike Lady Gaga, apologies...but, never heard of her! This is - obviously - written by a luddite of contemporary music.

Lady G has her Little Monsters, Charli[e] has her Angels [get it!?!]...both artists are soc-med savvy and both have a massive LGBT fanbase...and, both these ladies understand the power and profit of those Pink pounds, dollars and euros...that really is where the similarities end.

Where Lady G identifies as bisexual, Charli[e] has kept schtum concerning her sexuality...but, it would be fair to say, according to this film, she is quite some way from being a Kinsey 6! 

Basically, this is one of those COVID films, made by and about herself. Mental health during lockdown is fleetingly mentioned...hey, it's always comforting to hear that a multi-millionaire can be just as miserable, cooped up in their luxury mansion...during lockdown!

Bradly & Pablo take credit for the direction, when, in fact, all they really did was compile a load of [mostly] badly-filmed footage...using scissor-and-cellotape methodology. 

All-in-all, this really is a film for Charli[e]'s [millions of] Angels...no-one else. As if she needed anyone else...she's raking it in. Well done to her.

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A Distant Place
by Kun-Young Park

All is not as tranquil as it seems... 

One-by-one, secrets and lies, internalised and implied homophobia...all start to rear their ugly heads.

This is a slow beauty....gently, and with gentility, peeling back the layers. Park Kun-Young does not spoon-feed, working out the relationships is difficult...but, if you read the synopsis, it will help...our advice is: Don't.

Let this unravelling unravel in its own time...every question will not be answered, a happy ending is never guaranteed...but, it is an incredible and understated watch...at how love and kindness can profoundly change lives, hearts and minds.

Much is left to the imagination. Family is complex, love is complex, relationships are complex...run with these complexities, internalise them and let your imagination run free. And, by filling in the gaps, you will get the full story...in your mind's eye.

What a beautiful, mostly peaceful and complex film this is. This is life. 

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 Shorts: Family Affairs - just click on the pic!

     

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Day 2...

Death and Bowling
by Lyle Kash

Okay, here we go...Death and Bowling is undeniably experimental.

The problem with being experimental is - as is too often the case - the filmmaker is the only person who knows what's going on. And, indeed, if that is the case...then, the film really needs a mighty fine aesthetic to keep the audience engaged.

Death and Bowling has a mighty fine aesthetic...phew! The cinematography and composition are worthy of praise. And...the music is absolutely fantastic.

Here comes the tricky part...the narrative. Of course, being experimental, the narrative is never going to be straightforward. There is a story that - quite easily - could have been expanded [all the material and talent - needed - were standing in front and behind the camera]...lengthening the runtime from its measly 64 minutes - too long to be a short, too short to be a feature - an avoidable mistake that might put distributors off.

And, since this is a film about 'being seen' - the bitter irony is that after it completes its festival run, it probably won't be seen by very many people...which is a shame. Niche films are always vulnerable [and prone] to evanescence - streaming platforms have helped immeasurably in resolving this...but, when filmmakers do not use everything available to them...it's always going to be a battle...to be seen, to be heard...to be watched.

Again...more praise...to the trans visibility on show...however, it's just a little more tableau than the portmanteau it, possibly, aspired to be.

Lyle Kash has indisputable talent, it is a striking semi-feature debut. The aesthetic is art, the length problematic...the narrative, a little too contrived...perhaps, that was the point! And we missed!

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Long Live My Happy Head
by Austen McCowan & Will Hewitt

If there's one film that needs to be seen...it's this one.

Of course, it's emotional. How can it not be? Of course, it's sentimental. Again...how can it not be?

Gordon, an Edinburgh lad, has an inoperable brain tumour [aka Rick]...limiting his life expectancy. His coping mechanisms are not what you'd expect. He has morphed himself into being a voice-of-reason cartoon character in comic books...along with Rick, his nemesis. And, to a certain extent, this film...

And...no, this is not some kind of gloomy video diary of a man's decline. Far from it...it is the exact opposite. This a defiant affirmation of: What does not kill me makes me stronger - of course, he has some dark days, who wouldn't!?! And then, lockdown struck!

And...this goes out to all those who posted 'I'm so bored' videos on YouTube...only the boring get bored! Gordon created...and, he spent his 40th birthday on his own...in one of the most personal and emotionally charged scenes in the film.

Loneliness is a difficult kettle-of-fish altogether...imagine if your only companion through Lockdown was Rick?!? Doesn't that put everything into perspective? If it doesn't, it should!

Ultimately, Long Live My Happy Head is about care, creativity, support...and, love. Gordon loves and is loved...he calls himself lucky. Well, it's us, the audience, we're lucky to have made you acquaintance. Thank you for letting us in...for sharing and for showing us that glint in your eye. Cheeky :)

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Manscaping
by Broderick Fox

Two barbers and an artist...discuss hair, above, below and beyond!

Not quite sure where Devan Shimoyama fits into the grand scheme of things...but, he does have hair and he - most definitely - has something to say...and, art to show.

Jesse Anderson has recognised a few gaps in the market and is exploiting those gaps to the best of his abilities and client's delight...where else could you get a haircut, bound and packed at the same time?

And, last but by no means least...there's Richard Savvy [Dick Savvy, is that really his real name!?! Hysterical], the naked barber! You can either sit in his chair or swing in his sling...all in the name of personal grooming!

It's an entertaining and enlightening wee film about something that most of us take for granted - an non-traumatic, something for the weekend trip to the barbers. 

These barbers are offering much more...a safe space. And, for that, they can only be congratulated and frequented...y'all now know where to go when your hair is in dire straits and you just happen to be in Sydney! 

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Shorts: There Is No Place Like Home - just click on the pic!

      

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Day 3...

North by Current
by Angelo Madsen Minax

Why!?!

By the time all the facts are revealed and the credits roll, there are so many 'whys' - none of them are answered.

The biggest 'why' is...why would you want to trash your own family, your sister especially? Because, this is an absolute hatchet job. So much so...if Social Services were to see this, Jesse [the filmmaker's sister] will probably have her children taken from her. The evidence is all here - documented and exhibited by her sibling.

It is for this reason that no review of this film will be forthcoming. But...ethical filmmaking and the moral responsibilities of filmmakers are issues that need to be raised, be made aware of...and, adhered to.

One person's catharsis can be an other person's condemnation. Discuss.

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Boulevard! A Hollywood Story
by Jeffrey Schwarz

There's a great big elephant in this room that everyone seems to ignore...in fact, there are two! Gloria Swanson couldn't sing and the songs are absolutely atrocious. But, it would seem, her star shone so brightly...no-one dared tell her...or, they were too scared to tell her!

Which makes this story all the more entertaining...but, wait for it, the fun doesn't stop there. Gloria becomes Norma, falls for a closeted gay man who has written the lyrics to the tunes written by his soon-to-be dumped boyfriend.

Yes, the ill-fated Boulevard was destined to be ill-fated from the beginning. Jeffrey Schwarz has meticulously uncovered thought-to-be lost material that could quite easily become a madcap musical comedy...today! Go on...make it!

Sunset Boulevard is deemed to be one of the best films ever made. Norma Desmond, one of the best characters created...if you haven't seen the performance...well, you are missing out on one of the campest, most theatrical performances ever to have hit the silver screen. This unearthing of what happened next just adds to the allure of the film and its star.

Stuff that cinematic legends are made from!

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Shorts: Paths to Love - just click on the pic!

     

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Day 4...

Invisible: Gay Women in Southern Music
by T.J. Parsell

Who would have thought that behind many a great country song there stood - in the shadow - a woman, a gay woman at that!?! Well, there a quite a few in this macho, male-dominated industry...and they have many a story to tell and many more great songs to sing.

So...sit back and prepare yourself for an onslaught of emotion...and, rage - at the talent lost.

It would be unfair to single anyone out...all have incredulous stories, all have momentous songs. The highlights are frequent...the women sitting around a table having a wee impromptu jam, Linda Ronstadt being serenaded and, that harmonica!

There are stories to make your jaw drop, songs that will cause your tears to fly rather than flow...T.J. Parsell has done these women and [their] country music a massive justice...by giving them this platform and, by gosh, do they all step up to the plate!

There are two commons threads that have excluded these women from their deserved place in the limelight...men and church. It's time these twisted threads are unravelled and permanently cut...

Screw Nashville, screw Country Radio, screw the church!

Rather than being called Invisible...this film should have been called 'Invincible' - because that is exactly what all these women are...it's time to take your rightful place...in the limelight. We'll be watching and listening and crying and rejoicing.

A fantastic film.

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Fragrance of the First Flower
by Angel Han Teng

As many of you may know...we are not the greatest fans of the web series genre. There have been [and will be] a few exceptions...alas, this is not one of them!

But, since it has been presented at BFI: Flare - of course, we had to watch...the 1st episode showed promise, the 2nd episode killed it stone dead - at least, for us.

Dire dialogue, an obvious man-hating agenda...followed by, a coincidence that even Nostradamus couldn't dream up. The pace is slow, the production values are pretty high for a web series...it tries, and quite possibly succeeds, in having that day-time soap aesthetic [minus the camp]...with performances and script to match.

If daytime soaps are your thing...then, this will - most definitely - be your thing...minus the camp!

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Jimmy in Saigon
by Peter McDowell

All families have secrets. Most families have a pain they never want to re-visit...even for the sake of closure.

Peter McDowell needed closure...for the big brother, he barely knew. For his family.

Imagine...being drafted into the military, sent to Vietnam, tour completed, sent back home...only to return as a civilian as the war roared on. Jimmy McDowell did all that...the tragedy is, he never came back home. He died, in Saigon, aged 24...leaving behind a slew of unanswered questions...and, for his family, an undiscussed and hidden shame.

Patience, perseverance and many a platitude later, Jimmy's story starts to unfold. There were letters, addresses, photographs and suspicions to help with Peter's investigation. All he had to do was piece them all together and fill in the gaps...easier said than done! There was a war raging then and time has a way of forgetting - trips to France and Vietnam yielded little, apart from walking the same streets, staring at the same walls as his brother had...all those years ago.

After a major breakthrough, a second trip to Saigon...brings about a connection, a confirmation...and, ultimately, for that elusive closure that was so needfully sought.

An animation provides a jolt...of what could have been and, hopefully, was. The power of photographs will astound, not only for the emotions they stir up...but, for the company, comfort and companionship they offer.

Peter McDowell persisted where many would have given up...there's an aching love that runs throughout this film...hopefully, that ache has dulled a little, now that Jimmy's story has been told. This is eulogy. This is investment. This is love.

To Jimmy and Dũng...rest now. 

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Shorts: Strength in Vulnerability - just click on the pic!

    

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Day 5...

Being Bebe
by Emily Branham

There's much more than just a face, behind the make-up of a drag Queen...

BeBe Zahara Benet is an exception, there's much, much more behind the make-up! Sit back, Gin-ax, loosen those belt buckles...because, this ain't the ride you're going to expect!

Way back then...no-one knew that RuPaul's Drag Race would become as big as it is now. Way back then, no-one knew if there was even going to be a second series! Well...there was...and, the rest, as the say, is herstory!

You can almost hear RuPaul say: Lookie here, My girl is all grown up! The tried and tested formula that is Drag Race now...was only being tried and tested then...and, BeBe  came out on top...winning $10,000, not the 100k it is today!

Just like the prize money, Drag - around the world - has grown exponentially...thanks to RuPaul. Drag, as an artform, started to be recognised. But, what happens to a Drag Queen after the show is over? Remember there were no Las Vegas shows nor spin-offs to rely on. BeBe had a title [that didn't pay the bills] and an ambition [that could, possibly, pay the bills]. Success [for BeBe] was more critical than it was financial. And, honey, criticism sure don't pay those bills!

And then came AllStars 2018...BeBe didn't win...but, it put her back on the international stage and a permanent seat on the Drag Race express. AllStars was seen, by some, as a money-making anomaly...to some...as Drag altruism!

Being BeBe glides from the past to the present, flies back and forth from the USA to Cameroon, goes from family and friends to stages and nightclubs and back again...with ease. BeBe's wit, warmth and intelligence shine through at every stage. There's no delusion, just the realism that this Drag Superstar is a giant...one whose shoulders the younger princesses will stand upon.

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The Swimmer
by Adam Kalderon

Something went slightly wrong on this swimmer's journey from page to screen.

What could have been a gritty insight into the world of elite sportsmen...isn't! This is more homo-erotic than homo-sport...look, if you are going to get to the top of your chosen sport, it's not only talent that will get you there...single-mindedness, psychological strength and a dog-eat-dog mentality are all the obligatory requirements needed. Without one, it's simply a house of cards.

Erez ain't gonna make it...it's startling clear from the moment his pre-occupation...with a certain part of his own body and certain parts of the other swimmers' bodies...starts to take over.

This is a handsome film...in more ways than one! The cinematography, music and colour palette are as vibrant as the closing scene. A fantastically stylistic scene which showed what Adam Kalderon is capable of...had he adopted more of this stylistic approach from the beginning, The Swimmer could have been less the pretty montage it is...rather than the cutthroat competition it could have been.

Still, it is very easy on the eye! 

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Shorts: Out Here Livin’ - just click on the pic!

     

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Day 6...

The End of Wonderland
by Laurence Turcotte-Fraser

Just let Tara get on and do it!

Whether it be sticking some kind of object into an orifice, replacing shingles, filming a [potential] cult-porn classic...or, restoring old classic cars...Tara is the woman to do it. Oh...and, she can draw!

There's no dust on Tara, she never remains still enough for any to settle...with so many projects on-the-go, she's a woman-in-demand, the most demanding being herself!

Realistically, she knows she's not getting any younger. Realistically, she's aware that her on-line porn cash-cow could be coming to an end. And, realistically, she's non-delusional about the [potential] success of her up-coming sci-fi feature, trans-porn extravaganza...or, its titanic flop!

So...her decision to end [her] wonderland was more a case of financial prudence than fanciful folly. She's a business woman who is well aware that - in the not too distant future - she will lose her USP! Make hay while the sun shines and line your pockets for your own security.

This is a portrait of Tara that Tara created. There are no lewd tales, nothing personal...which may sound a little ironic since she does expose every part of her anatomy...rather lewdly. Compartmentalise! That's her job...this is her...and, she doesn't, nor needs to, give too much away.

Eccentricity can be fun...growing up, no matter how late in life you do it...can be traumatic. As expected, Tara deals with it pragmatically...

Clutter gone, the woman remains. A fantastic [and entertaining] portrait of one of our world's 'uniques'. 

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This is Not Me
by Saeed Gholipour

Roll on the day, when documentaries like this one, will cease to be made...

No matter where you are in the world, transition is a process...a process that is designed to safeguard the health and well-being of the person seeking to transition. Shervin and Samar have been served misinformation regarding the process as it is in the West.

By opening the film with a rather fractious lecture, sets the tone of the film from the off. Two people, seeking transition, divided by age and maturity, unified in nationality and Iran's - not as harsh as you would expect - trans policy and procedure - which really is a bit of a Catch 22, which, unfortunately, the filmmaker decides not to explore. An avenue that would have rendered this film far more interesting than it is.

Instead, two individuals demanding to transition - asap - without any regard or respect for the due process - that's really about it...oh, one practically bankrupts their family in doing so.

Let's just say...it is not a film you would want to watch again! 

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Shorts: Sweet Melodies - just click on the pic!

    

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Day 7...

Camila Comes Out Tonight
by Inés María Barrionuevo

This turns on so many pinheads...

Camila is no pushover, quite the opposite...cross her at your peril! This is neither a sexual awakening nor a coming-of-age, these kids - young adults - are all extremely mature, know what they want, know where they are going, know when they have f*&ked up!

Being a school drama, of course...there has to be the toxic bully. Here, he is more the privileged alpha male...and, has an immunity that will have you screaming at the screen! But...revenge is a dish best served cold...his comeuppance is not the expected smackdown. This is a statement...delivered with pride, power and committed defiance.

This is a beautifully composed film, the colour palette alone completes the aesthetic - but, seriously, the cinematography is art. Inés María Barrionuevo has steered her young cast through a story that never fails to surprise with its twists and turns. There are so many subdued highlights...but, Camila's conversation with her mother is a gem among gems.

A slow burner to begin with...then, when it starts to sizzle, it scorches! Damn fine filmmaking. 

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Framing Agnes
by Chase Joynt

When a short film becomes a feature...there is only one question that needs to be answered: Did the short deserve to be developed into a feature?

The answer here is...clearly...yes. There is an archive full of material that needs to be heard and seen. That's the positive...however, the negatives are too numerous to ignore.

Contemporary transference is a major problem...the thrusting of personal interpretations [and opinions] onto those who went before is nothing but a form of revisionism...and, revisionism has the power to mislead, misguide and misinform. Of course, trans history is important, has to be heard, has to be researched, has to be taught...but, all under that giant banner academic called...objectivity. Otherwise, it all becomes a replica of Hollywood's historical bullshit.

There is one voice-of-reason...Jules Gill-Peterson provides a scholarly commentary to the fantasist's approach that dominates the screen...perhaps, the academic aspect to the film could have been spread across a few more academics!?! One academic's 'opinion' comes perilously close to being subjective!

Look...the difficulty with this film is balance. Too much academia, there goes the audience-at-large. Too little...there goes the academics and, quite possibly, the niche audience! Everything presented ends with an 'I think' - let the audience think for themselves...by presenting the facts...without unnecessary gimmicks, the chat-show format...just bizarre.

Transference and projection are not the ways to tell these histories...by doing so, they serve a disrespect and an injustice to the person, their memory...and, to their story.

Chase Joynt has done this before with No Ordinary Man - the here-and-now is not the then-and-there...it never will be. Think ahead...how would you like your story to be told? Fantastically or factually? 

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Ultraviolette and the Blood-Spitters Gang
by Robin Hunzinger

The title seems to suggest something quite different to what is presented. Thoughts of a BDSM extravaganza were soon put to right after a few seconds of viewing.

Instead...a fascinating tale of two young women, for one is was a fling, for the other...the real thing! Talk about high maintenance...Marcelle is unrelenting. By today's standards, she would be charged with stalking...via incessant remittance! Trolling old-style!

And...in return, Marcelle was 'ghosted' by Emma. There's no wonder as to why!

A few wee quibbles...the narration ought to have been split between two or more voices, the contemporary music sits oddly with the visuals...and, the bikini wasn't invented until 1946!

But...there's no denying the artistry and creative processes involved in getting this story onto the screen. It is totally one-side though...Marcelle's ever-increasing desires, conquests and tragedies are laid bare...leaving behind more questions than answers...the evidence for the prosecution and in her defence are given entirely over to the audience...to make their own mind's up.

Was she a strong woman? Or, an emotional blackmailer? Or, a manipulator? Or, a lovelorn woman grasping at straws? All, one, none?

A sad tale...beautifully, creatively and artistically told. 

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Shorts: Now and Forever - just click on the pic!

      

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Day 8...

Nico
by Eline Gehring

What a frustrating film this is!

Why? Because...it needed one thing to erase the two problems that stops it from being an absolute great film.

One extra [final] scene...it would have lengthened the measly 69 minute runtime [10 minutes of closing credits is ridiculous]...and, more importantly, delivered the sucker-punch that this film so desperately needed. It ends with a puny grunt, rather than an air-punching cheer! With this film...you really do want to cheer...all the ingredients are there, in place...it's just bamboozling how 3 writers cannot see what is so obvious...alas, it's a common problem, when short film writers make that giant leap into the world of feature length!

Sara Fazilat is fantastic...she wears her heart-of-gold on her sleeve and leaves - wherever she goes - a wake of joy behind her...that is, unless you are an impatient driver!

As a statement on xenophobia, the writers could have taken this much, much further - but, the statement it does deliver is [still] loud and clear...although, it should have been louder! Deafening even. There is no police involvement which is an odd omission by the writers...all incidents of Hate Crime have to be reported to the police - it's an obvious avenue to explore...whether they take it seriously or not.

When a director [and writers] manage to get the audience on their side, not as easy as it sounds...the difficulty is, delivering what they want...otherwise, they'll leave baying at the moon...as is the case here

Nico is a mighty fine wee film as it is...incomplete. It's like a fantastic 1000-piece jigsaw with two missing pieces!

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Wet Sand
by Elene Naveriani

What an odd way to tell a story...via human puppets!

Everything is so staged and wooden - even the walking looks acted. You can see the [obvious] blocking and hear the direction...it's as if Elene Naveriani was summoning the ghost of Fassbinder...albeit with better production values!

Without a doubt, this is an overt mocking of small-town mentality - where tradition will always trump diversity. It could have worked if the two city-types weren't so animatronic and expressionless. Apart from the bleached hair and the police uniform, there really is no differentiation between these two vastly disparate worlds.

As a statement about Georgia's troubled past, present and future...and, this could be stretching the metaphor too far...to attain the country's asap aspiration [to accede into the EU]...it desperately needs to adapt and accept the modernity that comes with membership. Geographically speaking, Georgia is vulnerable and Russia still occupies 20% of the country...it's an interesting concept, how incoming people are perceived...as invaders, allies, occupiers or guests?

Wet Sand is all secrets and lies...an old love story is pitted against a blossoming one...the old was hidden, the new is brazen...it really does scream: Out with the old, in with the new.

It is a terrifically complex film...the puppetry is problematic...but, in the film's defence, you never know who actually is pulling the strings...here, it's the director. In real life, in Georgia...it's the State versus the Church versus the Occupiers!

An interesting and odd way to tell a story! 

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Dawn, Her Dad & the Tractor
by Shelley Thompson

If you are not trans yourself, you are stepping into an uncharted minefield, when you decide to make a film about a trans experience!

Choose your words carefully...or, you might be cancelled. Justify why you are the right person for the job...or, you will be cancelled. In recent times, many productions have been cancelled...most notably, Scarlett Johansson's Rub & Tug - and then, there was the boycotting hoo-ha that Rhys Ernst’s Adam caused - and that was made by a transman! We could cite many more examples...but, it's fair to say, the trans film genre is as fickle as a petrified, politically correct chameleon!

So...this here film is Shelley Thompson's debut feature, about a transwoman returning back to her rural home...for the first time since her transition. Aaargh! Minefield! You can almost hear the toxicity spewing forth from the PC brigade!

Is Shelley Thompson trans? No. Cancel! Boycott! But...she does have a trans son. A precarious calm descends upon the brigade...this could go either way!

Dawn, Her Dad & the Tractor will - most definitely - surprise the brigade, because of what it's not. It's not a film about transitioning. There are no discussions about surgeries, hormones, hardships and all the palaver that usually comes with a trans film. This is a good old, wholesome, family drama...replete with the hateful bigot and the adorable buffoon! Hey, it's de rigeur...in every family drama - you've got to have conflict and comic relief...the brigade are wavering, teetering on the edges of their collective seating arrangement, readying themselves...to explode!

Whispers of...white, middle-class are rustling under breaths, how clean is that farm and his dungarees! The brigade are getting agitated...idealism is just not their thing...nor, are tractors!

Look...if Hallmark were to make a film about transition...this would be it. Innocuous and shamelessly sentimental...it's just a different way [and, from a different perspective] to tell a story...by an ally...and, we all need allies, whether you like tractors or not! 

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Shorts: Where Do We Go From Here? - just click on the pic!

     

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Day 9...

The First Fallen
by Rodrigo de Oliveira

There will be tears.

For some unknown reason, it is impossible to get a fairly accurate figure for global HIV/AIDS deaths - according to unaids.org, 36.3 million [27.2 million–47.8 million] people have died from AIDS-related illnesses since the start of the epidemic.

The First Fallen is the story of just three lives lost. Terrified, isolated and powerless, they each clung onto life with every fibre of their deteriorating being...they became their own doctors, their own nurses.

How many Declarations of Geneva were ignored? How many Hippocratic oaths were broken? As many, in the medical profession, refused to treat those who needed their help most...

Rodrigo de Oliveira's film doesn't shy away from the inhumanity. It's a tough, intense watch...especially for those who remember and those who lost. And...for those who helped, for those who turned their backs. Because, believe it or not, backs were turned in gay bars and clubs throughout the world.

The first to fall...think, what must have they gone through! This is a glimpse.

And...the resonance this film has today, rings out...many people have led their entire adult lives in a pandemic...36.3 million lost theirs.

Tears flow...still and always. 

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Wildhood
by Bretten Hannam

From the mighty fine short film - Wildfire - comes a fine feature.

What this film desperately needed was a script editor to highlight the few inconsistencies and improbabilities...but, when the budget is this tight, a few links - invariably - become loose in the chain. Thankfully, not loose enough to break it!

There is much to admire...the cinematography, on this kind of a budget, is beyond impressive. The score...it just needed more!

The performances are all solid...with young Avery Winters-Anthony being the only actor to reprise his role. Chemistry, between the two leads, had to be vital...and, as understated as it is...it is. The beautifully lit [and edited] sex scene is testament to good taste and unharried filmmaking.

Mi'kmaq culture could have been shown more...with a powwow, which was sign-posted and expected...but, damn budget constraints, never appeared.

But...what Wildhood really needed was the defiant stand-off that Wildfire had...it really would have been that defining moment, the point when the boy becomes his own man...cutting and tying the ties that bound and bind.

Bretten Hannam has to be congratulated and applauded for what he has done with his short film. It really is fascinating to see how 12 minutes can be developed [rather than stretched] into something more worthwhile than ample. Wildhood is a fine feature...it could have done with a bit more fire! 

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Shorts: Everything Changes - just click on the pic!

      

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Day 10...

I am the Tigress
by Philipp Fussenegger & Dino Osmanoviç

Never judge a book by its cover...but, alas, many people do!

How are you perceived? As opposed to...how do you think you are perceived? 

Tischa Thomas has no doubt how she is perceived. She is verbally assaulted on - what sounds like - a daily basis...simply because of the way she looks and how she presents herself. Although...she is not trans, she is subjected to transphobic vitriol...and, that vitriol could easily spill into violence - that is, if she wasn't a mountain of hard-won muscle. The cruelty of cowards!

Tischa Thomas' self-perception is a different story entirely...a fighter, a survivor, a grandmother, an under-appreciated doyenne. She's heterosexual, fierce and realistic...born in 1970, she has to be, every athlete has a sell-by date!

I Am the Tigress is up close and personal, nothing seems to be off limits - although, some things undoubtedly are! Even her less salubrious proclivities are hung out for all to see...obviously staged...but, entertaining in a NSFW sort of way!

Positivity and pragmatism reign supreme in this portrait...even in the face of defeat and derision. Her message is clear, don't mess with this tigress, she'll either eat you or lick you...it all depends on how you present yourself to her!

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It Runs in the Family
by Victoria Linares Villegas

There's nothing quite like a bit of vicarious self-reflection...

Like all memories, they are subject to embellishment and/or deprecation as time marches on...Victoria Linares Villegas attempts to halt that deterioration, face the facts and present them as they now are...and, in doing so, she transfers herself into the story and it all becomes a bit of a vanity project.

Had the filmmaker not been distantly related to her subject...then, this is a film that would never have been made. This is a personal portrait, drawn rather sketchily with those vicarious overtones...there's too much waffle and not enough detail. Self-indulgence is never far away.

Bringing melodrama into a documentary is - quite frankly - bizarre and frustrating. “My memories of my childhood are disappearing,” states the director [and she's only in her 20s]...whoopie-do, that's what happens, memory is not infinite.

But...the drawing of parallels between herself and her [distant] relative [who died decades before she was born] is ludicrous. She has not been erased as - allegedly - her relative had been...there's a big difference between forgetting and erasure! Then [and, in many countries, still now] anti-governmental politics and homosexuality are two things that guarantee serious trouble...Oscar Torres probably fled for his life, for a better life. The director calls it familial erasure...we call it, wise flight [aka: emigration].

Less about the 'me' and more about the 'him' - may have yielded a far more interesting film.

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Gateways Grind
by Jacquie Lawrence

Well...what a delight this turned out to be. Who would have thought that a documentary about a women-only, defunct bar could be this entertaining!?!

And, entertaining it is...due to Sandi Toksvig's jolly presentation and wry narration. The Gateways club may have been reduced into history...but, with a bevy of notable customers and immortalised by being featured in The Killing of Sister George...it's place in history is safe and secure.

So, what went on Behind the Green Door? [yes, that's what the song is about, seemingly]...

Maggie Hambling, with her eternal fag, makes an appearance and is hysterical...

The right height...could get you an orgasm...so says, the LGBT poet laureate!

Lesbian bars and club come and go, short-lived and forgotten...anyone remember The Candy Bar??? The Gateways will always be remembered. For over 40 years it was a haven, a sanctuary...ran by a 'couple' of matriarchs who both had a wealth of 'experiences' worth telling.

If those walls could talk, this could be a whole series. Aaaw, sadly, they can't...but, this film will certainly whet every nostalgic appetite out there.

Satisfaction guaranteed. 

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Shorts: Drawn Together - just click on the pic!

     

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Day 11...

The Sound of Scars
by Leigh Brooks

As they say...time is a great healer!

Knowing absolutely nothing about this kind of music, never even heard of Life of Agony - the name alone is a little off-putting...so, watching this is either fearless intrepidation or utter foolishness!

Well...the surprises come thick and fast. Firstly, this not about the music [phew]. Secondly, there are no massive egos floating around. This is hardcore humanity wrought from the wrong side of the track...young lads doing whatever they can to escape, to survive.

Not exactly a rags-to-riches tale, this is an emotional rollercoaster through three decades of highs and lows, friendships and feuds. How we all change in 30 years! Hopefully...for the better. Time gives all of us the opportunity to reflect, maturity affords us the ability to forgive.

From where they were...to where they are now is cast-iron proof of the indomitable human spirit. Inner happiness has been found and they are happier together than apart...

A formidable film about friendship.

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 Sediments
by Adrian Silvestre

Feminism, sexism...egomania - not what was expected at all!

6 degrees of transition...take 6 trans women, their commonality is that they are trans and that is what they have in-common stops. With different ages, backgrounds and herstories, these women have their own voices and opinions and they are not afraid to speak out and be heard.

Part fly-on-the-wall, part docu-drama, part travelogue...Adrian Silvestre's film is an unexpected joy. It's not all plain sailing though, there are conflicts and controversies...especially between Yolanda and Cristina. But, ultimately, bonds are forged and friendships made. These similar but different walks of life come together for a brief moment in time and with differing wisdoms and rhythms, no doubt, each and all will return to their own path...possibly empowered, probably relieved...we're not so different after all.

An absolutely fascinating film that leaves its audience stronger together than apart. 

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Shorts: Parallel Lives - just click on the pic!

    

   

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Day 12... 
The World to Come
by Mona Fastvold

Period drama on a tight budget is always going to be an uphill struggle. But, when the story is overly familiar and overtly predictable, that struggle becomes even more arduous.

Obviously, comparisons are going to be made with Ammonite and Portrait of a Lady on Fire - but, that's not where the familiarity ends, Brokeback Mountain seems to have had a rather generous influence on Jim Shephard's short story. His [and Ron Hansen's] script has been overly stretched by the director...there's too much of nothing, scenes of unnecessary domesticity simply slow the film down to a snail's pace.

What this film desperately needed was a bit more grit, spit and grime...they are poor farmers in the back of beyond...with perfect coifs and perfectly polite manners! The many anachronisms are distracting, none more so than the soundtrack...call it Jazz, call it whatever you want, it's cacophonous and out of kilter with the film's mood.

Some short stories should remain short stories, preserving the subjective power of the mind's eye. Mona Fastvold's interpretation seems to contemporise rather than authenticate.

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The Law of Love
by Barbora Chalupová

The homophobic hate that is spewed throughout this film should be an urgent cause and case for concern and action...especially for the [impotent] powers of the European Union.

Newer members of the Union [i.e. Eastern Europe] have joined with absolutely no intention of following all the rules...namely the European Convention on Human Rights. This is NOT an optional membership perk. This is law. Yet, they flout it with little to no recrimination.

Each person who spewed their hate on-screen should be identified, charged and brought to trial...this hate has spread throughout Europe like a virus...freedom of movement = freedom to hate. The church has to be completely exorcised from the State...otherwise this venom will persist, spread and grow.

There are some who stand defiant for Equality...there are many who leave to find Equality elsewhere. Those who remain do so out of patriotic pride and duty...to help, to change, to improve...for themselves, for others and for the younger generations. And...they do so with dignity and intelligence...indeed, it's an uphill battle. But, if you keep on chipping away, there will be a level playing field someday, you just have to believe. Without belief...where would all we be? How ironical is that!?!

A good place to start is by dismantling those hate-fuelled religious institutions brick-by-brick...by disassociating them from the State and coercing them into facing the full might of European Law.

Respect to those who remain and for those who fight.

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Shorts: Once More, With Feeling - just click on the pic!

     

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These are the films we've watched and reviewed...just click on the picture.

   

   

   

 

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And here are the films that we would love to watch...but, not available to us. So if you want your film reviewed, send us a screener!

   

   

   

And...the short films we weren't able to watch...

    

Beirut Dreams in Colour / Kabibi / Know the Grass

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Oooh...gotta say...they missed out quite a few films and included some weird surprises...

Licorice Pizza is dreadful...

House of Gucci is pants...

And, please, someone explain The Power of the Dog...Benedict Cumber-knicker-sniffing-Batch walking like Charlie Chaplin with swollen balls!?!

Anyway...here are all the [mostly unremarkable] films...

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Best Film

Belfast

Don’t Look Up

Dune

Licorice Pizza

The Power of the Dog

Outstanding British Film

After Love

Ali & Ava

Belfast

Boiling Point

Cyrano

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

House of Gucci

Last Night in Soho

No Time to Die

Passing

Leading Actress

Lady Gaga – House of Gucci

Alana Haim – Licorice Pizza

Emilia Jones – CODA

Renate Reinsve – The Worst Person in the World

Joanna Scanlan – After Love

Tessa Thompson – Passing

Leading Actor

Adeel Akhtar – Ali & Ava

Mahershala Ali – Swan Song

Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power of the Dog

Leonardo DiCaprio – Don’t Look Up

Stephen Graham – Boiling Point

Will Smith – King Richard

Supporting Actress

Caitríona Balfe – Belfast

Jessie Buckley – The Lost Daughter

Ariana DeBose – West Side Story

Ann Dowd – Mass

Aunjanue Ellis – King Richard

Ruth Negga – Passing

Supporting Actor

Mike Faist – West Side Story

Ciarán Hinds – Belfast

Troy Kotsur – CODA

Woody Norman – C’mon C’mon

Jesse Plemons – The Power of the Dog

Kodi Smitt-McPhee – The Power of the Dog

Best Director

Aleem Khan – After Love

Ryûsuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car

Audrey Diwan – Happening

Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza

Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog

Julia Ducournau – Titane 

EE Rising Star Award - voted for by the public

Lashana Lynch

Ariana DeBose

Millicent Simmonds

Harris Dickinson

Kodi Smit-McPhee

Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer

After Love

Boiling Point

The Harder They Fall

Keyboard Fantasies

Passing

Film Not in the English Language

Drive My Car - Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Teruhisa Yamamoto

The Hand Of God - Paolo Sorrentino, Lorenzo Mieli

Parallel Mothers - Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar

Petite Maman - Céline Sciamma, Bénédicte Couvreur

The Worst Person In The World - Joachim Trier, Thomas Robsahm

Documentary

Becoming Cousteau - Liz Garbus, Dan Cogan

Cow - Andrea Arnold, Kat Mansoor

Flee - Jonas Poher Rasmussen. Monica Hellström

The Rescue - Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, John Battsek, P. J. van Sandwijk

Summer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised) Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, David Dinerstein, Robert Fyvolent, Joseph Patel

Animated Film

Encanto - Jared Bush, Byron Howard, Yvett Merino, Clarke Spencer

Flee - Jonas Poher Rasmussen. Monica Hellström

Luca - Enrico Casarosa, Andrea Warren

The Mitchells Vs The Machines - Mike Rianda, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller

Original Screenplay

Aaron Sorkin – Being the Ricardos

Kenneth Branagh – Belfast

Adam McKay – Don’t Look Up

Zach Baylin – King Richard

Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza

Adapted Screenplay

Siân Heder – CODA

Ryûsuke Hamaguchi – Drive My Car

Denis Villeneuve – Dune

Maggie Gyllenhaal – The Lost Daughter

Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog

Original Score

Being The Ricardos - Daniel Pemberton

Don't Look Up - Nicholas Britell

Dune - Hans Zimmer

The French Dispatch - Alexandre Desplat

The Power Of The Dog - Jonny Greenwood

Cinematography

Dune - Greig Fraser

Nightmare Alley - Dan Laustsen

No Time To Die - Linus Sandgren

The Power Of The Dog - Ari Wegner

The Tragedy Of Macbeth - Bruno Delbonnel

Costume Design

Cruella - Jenny Beavan

Cyrano - Massimo Cantini Parrini

Dune - Robert Morgan, Jacqueline West

The French Dispatch - Milena Canonero

Nightmare Alley - Luis Sequeira

Editing

Belfast - Úna Ní Dhonghaíle

Dune - Joe Walker

Licorice Pizza - Andy Jurgensen

No Time To Die - Tom Cross, Elliot Graham

Summer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised) - Joshua L Pearson

Production Design

Cyrano - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer

Dune - Patrice Vermette, Zsuzsanna Sipos

The French Dispatch - Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo

Nightmare Alley - Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau

West Side Story - Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo

Make-up and Hair

Cruella - Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne

Cyrano - Alessandro Bertolazzi, Siân Miller

Dune - Love Larson, Donald Mowat

The Eyes Of Tammy Faye - Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram, Justin Raleigh

House Of Gucci - Frederic Aspiras, Jane Carboni, Giuliano Mariana, Sarah Nicole Tanno

Best Sound

Dune - Mac Ruth, Mark Mangini, Doug Hemphill, Theo Green, Ron Bartlett

Last Night In Soho - Colin Nicolson, Julian Slater, Tim Cavagin, Dan Morgan

No Time To Die - James Harrison, Simon Hayes, Paul Massey, Oliver Tarney, Mark Taylor

A Quiet Place Part II - Erik Aadahl, Michael Barosky, Brandon Proctor, Ethan Van Der Ryn

West Side Story - Brian Chumney, Tod Maitland, Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom

Best Special Visual Effects

Dune - Brian Connor, Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Gerd Nefzer

Free Guy - Swen Gillberg, Brian Grill, Nikos Kalaitzidis, Daniel Sudick

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Aharon Bourland, Sheena Duggal, Pier Lefebvre, Alessandro Ongaro

The Matrix Resurrections - Tom Debenham, Hew J Evans, Dan Glass, J. D. Schwaim

No Time To Die - Mark Bokowski, Chris Corbould, Joel Green, Charlie Noble

Best Casting

Boiling Point - Carolyn McLeod

Dune - Francine Maisler

The Hand Of God - Massimo Appolloni, Annamaria Sambucco

King Richard - Rich Delia, Avy Kaufman

West Side Story - Cindy Tolan

British Short Film

The Black Cop - Cherish Oteka

Femme - Sam H. Freeman, Ng Choon Ping, Sam Ritzenberg, Hayley Williams

The Palace - Jo Prichard

Stuffed - Theo Rhys, Joss Holden-Rea

Three Meetings Of The Extraordinary Committee - Michael Woodward, Max Barron, Daniel Wheldon

British Short Animation

Affairs Of The Art - Joanna Quinn, Les Mills

Do Not Feed The Pigeons - Jordi Morera

Night Of The Living Dread - Ida Melum, Danielle Goff, Laura Jayne Tunbridge, Hannah Kelso

Outstanding Contribution

TBC

 

by David Anderson Cuter

After 2 long years, Glasgow Film Festival is back in person!

Here are all the films we intend to watch...a few changes - invariably - will occur!

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Day 1...

The Outfit
by Graham Moore

From where it starts off to where it ends up...is a path 'twistier' than Lomabard Street. So would say...too many twists, after the first few, you get the gist...it's all how to get out of a very awkward situation and saving your own skin [and those you care] for while doing so...alas, it doesn't take a genius to figure out the conclusion.

For the most part, this one-location, terribly theatrical production takes itself [way] too seriously. And, to be perfectly honest, it is difficult to take this dialogue-laden story seriously...and, some of the casting decisions may raise an eyebrow or two. Simon Russell Beale's gangland boss is a difficult pill to swallow...just a little camp when pitted against Mark Rylance's cool cucumber. Johnny Flynn and Dylan O'Brien play a dastardly duo, one better than the other...but, both taking it a little too far.

This is the Oscar-winning director's first feature, he won the Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay Oscar for The Imitation Game - it would seem that Mr Moore's ambition o're leapt itself. The Outfit could have worked [spectacularly] as a gangland spoof...because, it does come precariously close to being one...sadly, it's not! Ooops.

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Day 2...

My Old School
by Jono McLeod

Nowt as strange as folk and fact...for those who know the story, this is a partly animated dissection and explanation of the 'facts' - and, as time always does, those facts have become a little vague with the passing years. For those unfamiliar...sit back and feast upon a tale of blind, bold and bewildering ambition. The surprises come thick and fast.

Mr Cumming lip-synchs the story...and, as Mr Cumming said, he hasn't lip-synched since his drag days...as odd as this mechanism may sound, it works flawlessly and is executed perfectly...just like in the multi-Oscar nominated Flee, the animation ensures the protagonist's anonymity...with one major and revelatory exception...old footage and photographs emerge of the schoolman himself. Some of those 'facts' are [rather passionately and embarrassingly] turned on their heads. Some 'facts' are turned into fiction...but, one fact that is indisputable and unshakeable, Brandon Lee was a good, good friend.

The absolute joy of the film is simple...everyone [those who appear on-screen], teachers and classmates alike, take a step back and they laugh...at themselves...at how stupid they are all were to have fallen for the most bizarre, victimless con every perpetrated by a bogus schoolboy. The only 'victim' is/was Brandon Lee/Brian MacKinnon [the older one!]...and, there is a certain poignancy, a wee tinge of sadness and respect...for the dizzying lengths and breath-taking breaths some are capable of taking...to achieve their ambition. For that, kudos, Mr MacKinnon.

There is more to this story, not revealed in the film...and, it would seem his-story is not over yet! We all wait with bated breath...since, this wee film - genuinely -took our collective breaths away.

Ashgrove
by Jeremy LaLonde

Two things this film is not...cheery [it is about the metaphorical end of humankind] nor is it a COVID film...this has to be said, because, it would seem, COVID films have one thing in common, they are [at least, the ones that we have seen thus far] all exactly the split-screen same, depressingly so. So...do not let the spectre of COVID put you off from watching this beguiling, potentially dystopian, metaphor unfold.

Jeremy Lalonde and Jonas Chernick have made quite a few films together...most notably [and joyously] James vs His Future Self which premiered at Glasgow Film Festival a couple of years back, in those good old pre-COVID times. James delivered science with a comedic twist, Ashgrove delivers science with a terrifying finality!

How can two consecutive films - from the same filmmakers - be so different? Simple, Messieurs LaLonde and Chernick wanted to do something completely different and, in so doing, approach that work differently...hey, let's face it [head on], if you can't teach old dogs new tricks, the old tricks become boring. Well...these Messieurs ain't boring...nor are they old dogs!

Ashgrove is tight, tense and intimate...filmed in only 10 days, there is always a sense of urgency, lurking around and looming in the future...at its core, this is all about survival...of a relationship, of self, of humankind...indeed, hefty subject matter...and, with such a weight upon their shoulders, all the actors deliver precise performances within, what only be called, an imprecise premise. Fight or flight? Not exactly an easy choice when [potentially, possibly and probably] either outcome will be [or, might be] exactly the same! Now that's what you call a curved curveball...and, it would seem, Jeremy LaLonde is rather good at throwing them...when you can keep your actors, characters and audience on their toes...you are doing something right!

Here's a dish of food [for thought] that Ashgrove serves up rather generously: How well do you really [and I mean really] know your partner? Oooh just about everything there is to know! Now...ask yourself that very same question when mortality is a-knocking at the door?

Indeed, Ashgrove is food for thought...

The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic
by Teemu Nikki

Up close and very personal. 

As immersive as a film can possibly be...it's beautiful, it's cruel, it's disturbing, it's joyous. This is disability from a physically disabled person's perspective...written specifically for Petri Poikolainen who has multiple sclerosis...sadly, due to his deteriorating health, this may possibly be his last screen performance...and what a performance it is. What a statement he makes...because, this is Mr Poikolainen's film...he's rarely off-screen. Shot mostly in close-up with an extremely shallow depth of field - every blink, every wince, every expression is captured. He is captivating.

The kindness of strangers is pitted against the cruelty of [some] strangers...some scenes will wallop you like an electric shock, they will make you want to scream at the screen...and then, also, marvel at Jaakko's resilience and intellect.

The journey he takes is [then] pitted against the journey he takes the audience on...undoubtedly, hearts and minds, attitudes and opinions will be changed...simply because of the power, realism and charm he exudes. Disability can befall any one of us...at any time - imagine the rug being pulled from under your feet and there is no safety net. We have to stop failing people with disabilities, it really is that simple...because, governments and councils, everywhere, are continually failing these people. Accessibility, appropriate support, suitable housing, a [real] inflation-linked living wage...these should not be policy issues, these should be inalienable and unshakeable rights. 

The opening credits establish this a sensory film, not only is it that, it is a lush soundscape, a work of art, a statement...it is - without any quibble whatsoever - a sensational film.

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Day 3...

The Worst Person in the World
by Joachim Trier

She certainly is...a self-centred, manipulative heart-breaker...BTW, this brief description is wholly dependent upon how you perceive the 'he', who [unfortunately] is on her receiving end!

Nominated for 2 Oscars [!?!]...and, billed as a dramedy, there really is no comedy whatsoever. But, hey, comedy is subjective...and, this worst person just ain't [subjectively] funny...at all. In fact, she's just one [very] high-maintenance, annoying millennial...who doesn't settle for less than she demands...but, hey, maybe that's why this film has been lauded and applauded...by the award givers! We just didn't get it...at all.

What would have upped the stakes, if she was - in the slightest - a wee bit likeable, she's not. She manages to evoke more empathy for the poor f*&kers she tramples on and duly discards...perhaps, that was the point...what this woman wants, this woman [will make sure] she gets. Obviously, an admirable objective...but, literally, destroying people emotionally along the way is your thing...then, this is the film for you. We just didn't get it...at all.

Good luck with the Oscars! :(

Hive
by Blerta Basholli 

A pragmatic film...that will rally all hard-core Western feminists...and, undoubtedly, throw them [collectively] into a tizzy! But, this is not Western, comfy, touchy-feely feminism...this is a post-war, Eastern European tale of...survival. And, on that level, [and, only that level] it succeeds.

But...Ms Basholli had a political agenda which she shamelessly, unsubtly and effectively exploits. If you know nothing about the Kosovo War [yet one more catastrophic failing by the - ridiculously entitled - United Nations]...then, this film will scream empowerment, solidarity, vive la femme! Hooray!

But...if you do know a wee bit of the history [and, what happens when you ignore history?!?]...this pragmatic film [sadly] becomes an idealistic notion of that aftermath [of that war] that still hasn't been resolved, recompensed, reconciled...there are so many post-war words!

Too, too many 'issues' are simply ignored. The complexity was screaming to be heard...to be told...telling it the way it was and [still] is. As a film, it's okay [sorry to use that dreadfully bland word]...but, as a statement, it needs a bold revision!

Madeleine Collins
by Antoine Barraud

It's one of those...if the penny drops too soon...then, it's over. Thankfully, for me, the penny dropped at the right time!

Fear not, there are no spoilers contained herein. Judith leads a double lie, two families, different countries. She's copes surprisingly well, juggling all her expected duties with an admirable composure. There's no judgment...Virginie Efira's elegance alone sees to that. You just cannot not dislike this character! In fact, admiration [for her] starts to creep in.

Her eldest son is gay, no big deal - he's banned from his boyfriend's car because he [the boyfriend] drives like a maniac - it's a sweet, understated scene - in fact, sweet domesticity seems to be the norm in both homes. This lady loves both men and all her kids...and, it's totally believable. Obviously, this idyll can't last forever...when it starts to unravel, it unravels in ways you won't expect. 

Antoine Barraud really is in control, carefully dropping hints, drip-by-drip...until it lands...and, what a landing it is! To say anymore really would spoil it.

A mightily clever film that will leave you breathless!

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Day 4...
Nitram
by Justin Kurzel

Martin Bryant [Nitram, backward Martin] has learning and developmental disabilities - in 1996, he amassed a small arsenal of weapons, went out one day and killed 35 people, injuring many others.

Surely...accountability must be claimed by several people and organisations!?! None has and none will ever be.

This film does not point-the-condemning-fingers at the obvious...the parents, social workers, teachers, doctors or the Government...it simply shows how the 'system' failed Martin Bryant...and the 35 people he killed, the extended family and friends, those he injured. Yet...no accountability has been attributed, let's call it what it is...State and Institutional Negligence.

Caleb Landry Jones delivers a masterclass...Bryant, now, is perceived as being born evil, there is no suggestion of that in neither the performance nor the film. He was a troubled boy in a man's body...he's mischievous, challenging, demanding, awkward. Bryant should have been classed as a vulnerable person and received the support he so desperately needed. Instead, he was allowed to form a bizarre alliance, allowed to buy the guns that killed 35 people.

By no means is this review [or the film] trying to justify Bryant's crime...he is best served where he is, in a secure hospital. Perhaps, if he had been served with the professional care and support he needed when growing into adulthood, there would be no need for this Nitram.

A Banquet
by Ruth Paxton

A film that really doesn't know what it is or where it's going...needless to say, where it ends up is way beyond the acceptable realm of plausibility. 

Billed as a horror...yes, an eating disorder can be a true horror for the victim, family and friends. But, here, she doesn't lose any weight...so, her life is not at risk. There goes the realistic horror. Moving on swiftly...into the world of existential horror...where possession, myth and nightmare reign supreme...only, they don't here...simply because, there are too many tropes being bandied around...and what do too many tropes do!?!

The only voice-of-reason comes from Lindsay Duncan's grandmother...who basically calls her granddaughter exactly what she is...an attention-seeking, sneaky wee brat. Now, if this banquet had gone down that road...with the interfering granny sticking her nose in where it was most definitely needed but not required...then, this could have been a real delicacy.

As a whole, it's a dish, visually, well-served...sadly, with way too many ingredients and missing the vital seasoning. Really...less is definitely more.

The Girl and the Spider
by Ramon Zürcher & Silvan Zürcher

There really is no story to speak of...it's all lingering looks with multiple threads of subtext that are subtle as mosquito bites accompanied by a mountain of apathetic dialogue that will make your hair fall out rather than curl it! These Millennials have neither personality, wit nor joie-de-vivre.

If you manage to sit through the tedium of the first 30 minutes...rest assured, things do not improve whatsoever. Different apartment, same vile people, spouting nonsense...but, alas, with the same noxious leitmotifs and mid-shots that the Zürcher brothers have claimed to be their cinematic trademarks. Yawn...speaking of the film...yawn.

On a brighter note, hearing Desireless' classic 1986 tune Voyage, Voyage was not just a pleasant surprise but a confounding one too...would these lacklustre Millennials have such good musical taste? What a conundrum! Speaking of conundrum, this yawn-fest has won quite a few prestigious awards. What do we know!?! What do they know...that we don't know!?!

Lost Illusions
by Xavier Giannoli

Hallelujah...the master storyteller has been served a masterful film...winning 7 Césars.

This has absolutely everything...from genteel rural naïveté to a scathing urban comment. No-one is safe from Balzac's poisonous pen...the Liberals get a kicking, The Royalists get slapped down at every opportunity...but, it is the [restored] aristocracy who get savaged.

This is French history with a bitter [and rather brilliant] twist of modernity - the corruption, the scheming, the exploitation and manipulation are all still in existence today. This is a scathing indictment of that ridiculous political promise: Social mobility. And...an all-out assault on those who will do absolutely anything to retain their privilege and wealth.

This is kaleidoscopic hedonism...imbued with a lush subtext. The pace never falters and the decadence never disappoints. Not many have pulled-off Balzac's great work...Xavier Giannoli has done just that...in a mesmerising 150 minutes, he proves himself to be a consummate and thrilling storyteller. Lost Illusions is social mobility's rollercoaster...once you're on it, you don't want to get off! It ended too soon!

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Day 5...

Red Rocket
by Sean Baker

Google the title...! I had no idea!

Simon Rex does the lovable rogue to perfection. Sean Baker delivers another slice of the American underclass...with comedic undertones and amoral overtones.

The porn industry is a massive global market...but, nowhere 'celebrates' it quite like America...but, what happens to porn stars after they shoot their final shot!?! There is much conjecture about the life expectancy of adult performers...but, what Red Rocket does so successfully...is to show the acts of desperation, the clutching at straws...that absolute reluctance to accept it's finally over. And...what have you got to show for it all? Some DVDs, bedpost notches, a few good stories, a multitude of anonymous 'likes' and no bloody money!

So...what do you do when you find yourself at the bottom of the porn-heap? You discard what little dignity you have left, eat humble pie, become a parasite, a predator [both] at the same time! And, if you can get away with it, no matter how reprehensible you are, you might even get that final stab, the last dance!

What a statement to make...that's Red Rocket for you...entertaining, grim and completely amoral...with a standout central performance.

Love, Life and Goldfish
by Yukinori Makabe

A musical about...wait for it...goldfish scooping!!!

When big-city egos collide with small-town mentalities things can get ugly. Alas, not here...this is all goldfish scooping [!] and song! And...it's gotta be said, some of the songs are really rather good...in a Eurovision sort-of-way. Although, there are a couple of horrors!

There's not much to say other than...it's a sweet, sentimental film that bamboozles [goldfish scooping!] as it entertains. There's nothing challenging here...apart from the goldfish scooping!

Apologies...but, goldfish scooping is - in Japan - an actual thing...with a National Goldfish Scooping Championship...who would have thunked it!?!

Her Way
by Cécile Ducrocq

Some mothers do have 'em...and, this mother has one you wouldn't wish upon your worst enemy.

Laure Calamy - without any quibble whatsoever - steals the show. What a performance. What a mother! What a mistake she made...and, we're not talking about her awful son!

Shamelessly, she's a sex worker. Selflessly, she does what she can for her ungrateful son...this is selflessness that will - quite literally - take your breath away.

This is Cécile Ducrocq's debut feature...and, hopefully, the first of many...she certainly gets under the skin, scratches around and delivers character arcs that are beautiful and intriguing to witness. The snowball scene is something to behold...a turning point in the maturity and mentality of the situation and characters. An absolute emotional spectacle. The intrigue...merely hinted at! So clever.

As for the ending, it needs to be commented upon...there was a definitive and perfect place to end. But...this director had a frame in mind...and, what a fantastic frame it turned out to be...a wee trans storyline, thought forgotten...but, beautifully remembered.

Her Way turned out to be the right way...what an utterly fantastic feature debut...and, Laure Calamy's performance is the cherry on top.

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Day 6...

Benedetta
by Paul Verhoeven

Take this seriously...at your peril.

The atrocious Showgirls gets a 17th century make-over...with bigger production values, more acting talent...in fact, more of everything.

Stigmata, a wooden dildo and lesbian nuns...what more could Paul Verhoeven throw at the screen? Plenty...the 'nunsense' just keeps on coming! There's never a dull moment in this religious romp...so much so, it bounces, back and forth, across that fine line between high camp and downright sexploitation...wonderfully so...and, with unabashed gay abandon!

But...is it anti-religious? What a stupid question...of course it is! Every horror-loving, devout catholic should watch this...they will squirm at this despicable depiction of their faith. As it is now, as it was then...the catholic church is a bigger business than it is an harbinger for the second coming!

Is it a feminist film? Well...that all depends on what kind of feminist you are! The man-hating fems will be in two minds...powerful women directed by a man!

Look, in all fairness, Benedetta is nothing but a rabble-rousing, fabulous farce...sure, it's heresy and blasphemy all rolled into one fact-based, semi-erotic, anti-religious fiction.

Just don't take it too seriously...and, if you do or don't, these frolicking nuns will certainly titillate...and/or, traumatise!

Benediction
by Terence Davies

Our advice: Watch this film [at least] twice. Then, and only then, will you get the full emotional thrust that Terence Davies relentlessly and stylistically delivers.

When a bright young thing reaches the depth of their despair. A life led with so many anomalies can only be a life lived with regret. Peter Capaldi's elderly Sassoon spits venom...fuelled with a churlish frustration of being unappreciated, barely recognised...the last throes of narcissism! 

By stark contrast, Jack Lowden, as the young Sassoon, delights in the delights of privilege and connection. His war experience affords him a fragility that cracks but never shatters. He is an eloquent Lothario-in-training.

The affection that Terence Davies shows for the young Sassoon is spotlighted against his obvious and unbridled contempt for Ivor Novello...a conceited heart-breaker, so-much-so, it's difficult to see why Novello was even tolerated in this society. Still, money and fame always trump and thump the required family trees of aristocracy.

The conflicts are vast and complex, as is the timeline...but, with this honed director's experience, there's nothing ramshackle or random. This is a blessing...for the fallen, for the bright things...for love.

Siegfried Sassoon's despair came not from being under-appreciated, nor for being unflappably unforgiving...but, from remembering and being constantly reminded of his one true lost love.

“W’s death was an unhealed wound, & the ache of it has been with me ever since. I wanted him back—not his poems.”

An emotional wallop. 

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Day 7...

Anaïs in Love
by Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet

She's Vegemite. The film is Marmite.

Anaïs is always late. She runs everywhere. She gets what she wants. She cares for no-one but herself. Seemingly, she's 'charming' euphemistically speaking. She's irritating. She's annoying. She's overtly high-maintenance and she's an absolute bore! So...what's her discombobulating allure?

Frankly, who cares!?! She's exhausting.

This is the French [bisexual] equivalent to The Worst Person in the World [and, she was too]...both films have received an overwhelming amount of incredulous critical praise, the only problem is...both are labelled as being comedies and yet not one genuine laugh is to be had from either film.

Love it. Loathe it. Either way...it's a forgettable, unfunny comedy.

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Day 8...

Bruno Reidal
by Vincent Le Port

Bruno Reidal is the perfect confessor. He's eloquent, detailed and precise. He makes no assumptions and blames no-one but himself. He did the crime. He will take the punishment.

Once upon a time...if you murdered, you automatically received the death penalty, an eye for an eye. Thankfully, the law changed and 'Fitness to stand trial/fitness to plead' was introduced. The legal process was forever altered!

Was Bruno Reidal insane? That's the crux of the story.

Catch 22...and, Vincent Le Port starts playing with his audience. Is he mad or isn't he mad? He must be mad, look what he did! He can't be mad, he's educated, articulate...he knew what he was doing! Did he? Was it temporary insanity? He's sane now! Is he?

As complex as it sounds, Monsieur Le Port keeps it grounded...relatable even, apart from the heinous deed itself. There are moments of empathy for Bruno, in part due to the implosively subdued performance by Dimitri Doré - his first screen role.

France's last execution, by guillotine, took place in Marseille in 1977...decades before, Bruno Reidal beheaded a boy. Was he [temporarily] insane? He, according to this film, claimed to be...just himself.

Hamida Djandoubi was that last state-sanctioned victim of the guillotine...he, unsuccessfully, claimed temporary insanity!

As complex as it sounds...indeed, it is as complex as it needs to be.

An astonishing film...one that will leave you thinking...beyond your usual realm-of-thought.

[And, if you are a criminal lawyer, it will leave you thinking even more and wanting/needing to get your hands on the case notes!] 

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Day 9...

Tigers
by Ronnie Sandahl

Is it a brutal attack on the beautiful game? No, infuriatingly not.

Most professional footballers are under-educated and clueless. Their lives are owned, managed and exploited. Their reward is...money. Forget about the glory and adoration, it all boils down to money. Lots of it. Football is big business and nothing and no-one will stand in its way. There's too much at stake, too much too lose.

Many have travelled through the ever-decreasing doorways towards footballing wealth...this is just one tale of the many who failed to make it into the big time. Couldn't hack it, wasn't good enough...are the most popular opinions. The system is designed to weed out those haven't got 'it' or who can't cope. It's called investment.

Throw money at a clueless kid and what does he do? He buys a sportscar and isn't old enough to drive it. Football deals in well-being, not in mental health. A fact that Ronnie Sandhal and Martin Bengtsson have failed to acknowledge...making this fact-based fiction into something less scathing than it ought to have been.

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Day 10...

Everything Went Fine / Tout s'est bien passé
by François Ozon

First and foremost, there are major differences between euthanasia and assisted suicide...legally and morally.

Secondly, and what many people fail to understand or accept, the law is designed to protect life...regardless of personal autonomy. And, regardless of which side of the debate you are on, this debate that will rage on for infinity.

Your body. Your life. Your decision. It has to be your own decision, a decision made when you still had the capacity to make it. Time and timing are of the essence.

This is where this film sits, uncomfortably in time...with differences of opinion, moments of apathy, fits of passion...and, fancy flirtations.

This is the epitome of tragicomedy. The inevitability of death is paraded through its characters and stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Each is represented, each is voiced...and, each is silenced.

Monsieur Ozon has interpreted Emmanuèle Bernheim's book with great care and dignity. A sombre subject indeed...but, with the lightness of touch, the mood never veers off into the maudlin.

Dignity...in life and death. Everything went fine - how polite. How beautifully polite. 

Moon, 66 Questions
by Jacqueline Lentzou

Any film that uses Tarot cards to announce 'meaning' needs to be something very special indeed. Otherwise, just like a house of cards, it will collapse.

Moon 66 collapses almost immediately. Why would an estranged daughter move back to Greece to care for her ailing father, a man she hardly knows? It doesn't make any sense...especially when he has support! Oooh...it's all about reconnection and re-bonding before the inevitable. Okay, got that, moving on...the only problem [apart from those damn Tarot cards] is Artemis [the daughter]...she is a complete and utter pain-in-the-ass. Gawd, if she's like this as an adult, she must have been an absolutely dreadful kid...no wonder they were estranged!

There is nothing to like about Artemis...that scene in the garage - which goes on for an eternity - sums her up perfectly. Instead of recognising her ineptitude for driving, she just starts crashing an SUV - again-and-again - against the wall. Frustrating for her. Frustrating to watch. Imagine her being your carer!

Stuffed full of symbolism and metaphor, Moon 66 has all the pretensions of being part of the Greek New Wave...but, falls short due to its lack of quirkiness. Moon, 66 Questions is hard, unenjoyable work...as for the secret, it could be spotted a mile off! 

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Day 11...

The Ledge
by Howard J. Ford

It is what it is...not-so-low budget...but, oh-so-low on writing and acting talent. 

Tom Boyle's first feature writing credit, deemed to be his last...but, blame has to be shared with a director incapable of spotting dodgy dialogue from an acceptable distance.

Anyway...it's all toxic masculinity with a soupçon of subtext - that's the only surprise!

Fairly predictable and, if there's nothing at all worth watching, strangely entertaining!

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Day 12...

Wake Up Punk
by Nigel Askew

What is there to say about Punk that hasn't been said before? Absolutely nothing...unless you are Joe Corré [yawn].

If punk is not already dead [some will argue it died the day it started, others will swear that it has always been alive and kicking]...whatever, Joe Corré killed it stone dead...by burning a guestimated £5 million worth of punk memorabilia and masquerading that deleterious deed as an environmental protest. [yawn] You couldn't make this garbage up!

Malcolm, his father, will be reeling in his grave. And Vivienne, his mother...well, let's just say he's lucky to have her as his mum...only a mother could love a son like this!

An entertaining film...for all the wrong reasons. Watch it for the stupidity, for the idiocy, for the hypocrisy...and, for the mellowing of Punk.

Dreaming Walls
by Maya Duverdier & Amélie van Elmbt

The building has spoken for itself...for decades. The Illuminati of yesteryear are well-documented.

Just let the last remaining residents do the talking!

That's exactly what the directors did...the effect is mesmerising, almost dream-like. As disparate, as eccentric as they are, this is their home within a building site, their physical histories are being renovated beyond recognition...but, their personal histories are being recorded for posterity.

As gentrification attacks the security of these few stalwart residents, they - quite literally - stand on their last defiant legs. They will take their last breaths at the Chelsea Hotel. To paraphrase a fine, fine song: You'll be remembered so well in the Chelsea Hotel.

Hotel Chelsea reopened in February 2022...with their cheapest and smallest room being $475/night - it's farewell to Bohemia, hello tourists!

Sad, isn't it?

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A great big thank you...to everyone @glasgowfilmfest xxx

The winners will be announced on March 17th 2022.

BEST FILM

Drive My Car (Janus)

The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

The Worst Person in the World (Neon) 

Tick, Tick. . .Boom! (Netflix)

West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

BEST LGBTQ FILM

Benedetta (IFC Films)

Flee (Neon, Participant)

Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics)

Shiva Baby (Utopia)

The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

BEST NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE FILM

Drive My Car (Janus)

Flee (Neon, Participant)

Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics)

The Worst Person in the World (Neon)

Titane (Neon) 

BEST UNSUNG FILM

Mass (Bleecker Street) 

Passing (Netflix) 

Shiva Baby (Utopia)

The Green Knight (A24)

Zola (A24)

BEST DIRECTOR

Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

Julia Ducournau, Titane (Neon) 

Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Drive My Car (Janus Films) (Janus)

Steven Spielberg, West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

Denis Villeneuve, Dune (Warner Bros.)

BEST SCREENPLAY

Drive My Car (Janus) – Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe (adapted)

Passing (Netflix) – Rebecca Hall (adapted)

The Lost Daughter (Netflix) – Maggie Gyllenhaal (adapted) 

The Power of the Dog (Netflix) – Jane Campion (adapted) 

The Worst Person in the World (Neon) – Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier (original) 

BEST FILM PERFORMANCE

Nicolas Cage, Pig (Neon)

Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye (Searchlight) 

Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter (Netflix)

Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

Penelope Cruz, Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics)

Andrew Garfield, Tick, Tick. . . Boom! (Netflix)

Renate Reinsve, The Worst Person in the World (Neon)

Simon Rex, Red Rocket (A24)

Kristen Stewart, Spencer (Neon)  

Tessa Thompson, Passing (Netflix)

BEST SUPPORTING FILM PERFORMANCE

Ariana DeBose, West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

Robin de Jesús, Tick, Tick. . . Boom! (Netflix)

Colman Domingo, Zola (A24)

Ann Dowd, Mass (Bleecker Street)

Kirsten Dunst, The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

Mike Faist, West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

Troy Kotsur, CODA (Apple)

Ruth Negga, Passing (Netflix)

Martha Plimpton, Mass (Bleecker Street)

Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog (Netflix) 

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Flee (Neon, Participant)

Procession (Netflix)

Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It (Roadside Attractions)

Summer of Soul (Searchlight, Hulu)

The Rescue (Greenwich Entertainment, National Geographic) 

The Velvet Underground (Apple)

BEST LGBTQ DOCUMENTARY 

Ailey (Neon)

Flee (Neon, Participant)

My Name is Pauli Murray (Amazon Studios)

Pray Away (Netflix)

Wojnarowicz: F**k You F*ggot F***er (Kino Lorber, World of Wonder)

MOST VISUALLY STRIKING FILM

Dune (Warner Bros.)

Nightmare Alley (Searchlight)

Passing (Netflix)

The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

West Side Story (20th Century Studios)

Titane (Neon)

BEST ANIMATED FILM

Belle (GKids)

Encanto (Disney)

Flee (Neon, Participant)

Luca (Disney) 

The Mitchells vs. the Machines (Netflix, Sony)

BEST FILM MUSIC 

Dune (Warner Bros.)

Encanto (Disney)

Spencer (Neon)  

The Power of the Dog (Netflix)

Tick, Tick. . .Boom! (Netflix)

“WE’RE WILDE ABOUT YOU!” RISING STAR 

Ariana DeBose

Alana Haim

Patti Harrison

Jasmin Savoy Brown

Rachel Zegler

WILDE ARTIST – to a truly groundbreaking force in film, theatre and/or television

Pedro Almodóvar

Jane Campion

Jennifer Coolidge

Lil Nas X

Lin-Manuel Miranda 

CAMPIEST FLICK 

Annette (Amazon Studios)

Cruella (Disney)

House of Gucci (United Artists) 

Malignant (Warner Bros.)

Old (Universal)

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Too many lower budget films have been snubbed in favour of the 'big guns' - here are the films that we've seen that [we think] ought to have been honoured:

AIDS Diva: The Legend of Connie Norman
Benediction
Bitch Who Stole Christmas (The) - the campiest flick ever!
Compartment Number 6
Cop Secret
Great Freedom
Hating Peter Tatchell
Hill Where Lionesses Roar (The)
Man with the Answers (The)
Most Beautiful Boy in the World (The)
Novice (The)
Operation Hyacinth
Rebel Dykes
Swan Song
Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation

---

 

The 94th Academy Awards ceremony will be on Sunday, March 27th at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Here are 2021's nominations:

PICTURE:
Belfast
CODA
Don't Look Up
Drive My Car
Dune
King Richard
Licorice Pizza
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story

DIRECTOR:
Kenneth Branagh - Belfast
Ryusuke Hamaguchi - Drive My Car
Paul Thomas Anderson - Licorice Pizza
Jane Campion - The Power of the Dog
Steven Spielberg - West Side Story

ACTOR:
Javier Bardem - Being the Ricardos
Benedict Cumberbatch - The Power of the Dog
Andrew Garfield - tick, tick…BOOM!
Will Smith - King Richard
Denzel Washington - The Tragedy of Macbeth

ACTRESS:
Jessica Chastain - The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Olivia Colman - The Lost Daughter
Penelope Cruz - Parallel Mothers
Nicole Kidman - Being the Ricardos
Kristen Stewart - Spencer

SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Ciarán Hinds - Belfast
Troy Kotsur - CODA
Jesse Plemons - The Power of the Dog
J.K. Simmons - Being the Ricardos
Kodi Smit-McPhee - The Power of the Dog

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Jessie Buckley - The Lost Daughter
Ariana DeBose - West Side Story
Judi Dench - Belfast
Kirsten Dunst - The Power of the Dog
Aunjanue Ellis - King Richard

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Belfast - Kenneth Branagh
Don't Look Up - Adam McKay; Story by Adam McKay & David Sirota
King Richard - Zach Baylin
Licorice Pizza - Paul Thomas Anderson
The Worst Person in the World - Eskil Vogt & Joachim Trier

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
CODA - Siân Heder
Drive My Car - Ryusuke Hamaguchi & Takamasa Oe
Dune - Jon Spaihts and Denis Villeneuve and Eric Roth
The Lost Daughter - Maggie Gyllenhaal
The Power of the Dog - Jane Campion

ANIMATED FEATURE:
Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells vs The Machines
Raya and the Last Dragon

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE:
Drive My Car (Japan)
Flee (Denmark)
The Hand of God (Italy)
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (Bhutan)
The Worst Person in the World (Norway)

CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Dune - Greig Fraser
Nightmare Alley - Dan Laustsen
The Power of the Dog - Ari Wegner
The Tragedy of Macbeth - Bruno Delbonnel
West Side Story - Janusz Kaminski

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
Ascension - Jessica Kingdon, Kira Simon-Kennedy, Nathan Truesdell
Attica - Stanley Nelson & Traci A. Curry
Flee - Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen, Charlotte De La Gournerie
Summer of Soul - Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, Joseph Patel, Robert Fyvolent, David Dinerstein
Writing With Fire - Rintu Thomas & Sushmit Ghosh

DOCUMENTARY SHORT:
Audible - Matt Ogens & Geoff McLean
Lead Me Home - Pedro Kos & Jon Shenk
The Queen of Basketball - Ben Proudfoot
Three Songs for Benazir - Elizabeth Mirzaei & Gulistan Mirzaei
When We Were Bullies - Jay Rosenblatt

ANIMATED SHORT:
Affairs of the Art - Joanna Quinn & Les Mills
Bestia - Hugo Covarrubias & Tevo Díaz
Boxballet - Anton Dyakov
Robin Robin - Dan Ojari & Mikey Please
The Windshield Wiper - Alberto Mielgo & Leo Sanchez

LIVE-ACTION SHORT:
Ala Kachuu - Take and Run - Maria Brendle & Nadine Lüchinger
The Dress - Tadeusz Łysiak & Maciej Ślesicki
The Long Goodbye - Aneil Karia & Riz Ahmed
On My Mind - Martin Strange-Hansen & Kim Magnusson
Please Hold - K.D. Dávila & Levin Menekse

VISUAL EFFECTS:
Dune
Free Guy
No Time to Die
Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings
Spider-Man: No Way Home

PRODUCTION DESIGN:
Dune - PD: Patrice Vermette; Set: Zsuzsanna Sipos
Nightmare Alley - PD: Tamara Deverell; Set: Shane Vieau
The Power of the Dog - PD: Grant Major; Set: Amber Richards
The Tragedy of Macbeth - PD: Stefan Dechant; Set: Nancy Haigh
West Side Story - PD: Adam Stockhausen; Set: Rena DeAngelo

COSTUME DESIGN:
Cruella
Cyrano
Dune
Nightmare Alley
West Side Story

MAKE-UP & HAIR:
Coming 2 Ameirca - Mike Marino, Stacey Morris, Carla Farmer
Cruella - Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne, Julia Vernon
Dune - Donald Mowat, Love Larson, Eva von Bahr
The Eyes of Tammy Faye - Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram, Justin Raleigh
House of Gucci - Göran Lundström, Anna Carin Lock, Frederic Aspiras

FILM EDITING:
Don't Look Up - Hank Corwin
Dune - Joe Walker
King Richard - Pamela Martin
The Power of the Dog - Peter Sciberras
tick, tick…BOOM! - Myron Kerstein & Andrew Weisblum

SOUND:
Belfast
Dune
No Time to Die
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story

ORIGINAL SCORE:
Don't Look Up - Nicholas Britell
Dune - Hans Zimmer
Encanto - Germaine Franco
Parallel Mothers - Alberto Iglesias
The Power of the Dog - Jonny Greenwood

ORIGINAL SONG:
"Be Alive" from King Richard
"Dos Oruguitas" from Encanto
"Down to Joy" from Belfast
"No Time to Die" from No Time to Die
"Somehow You Do" from Four Good Days

---

 

After nearly 50 years of hiding, Leatherface returns to terrorize a group of idealistic young friends who accidentally disrupt his carefully shielded world in a remote Texas town.

Based on characters created by Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper. Story by Fede Álvarez & Rodo Sayagues. Screenplay by Chris Thomas Devlin. Directed by David Blue Garcia.

When the Westphal family learned that their 6-year-old Kyle was on the Autism spectrum, they feared they might never develop a real connection to their child. Withdrawn and constantly wrapping himself in fabric and blankets, Kyle was retreating from the world around him. Determined to find a way to connect, his parents embarked on an intense and radical journey which involved compassionately joining Kyle in his unique behaviors. Twenty years later, the entire family looks back at Kyle's journey with candor and humor. Let Me Be Me reveals what happens when a boy who used fabric as his shield to hide himself grows up to become a fashion designer, forging connections with friends and family along the way.

 

The following films are longlisted for the 2022 EE British Academy Film Awards, listed alphabetically by title, with the exception of the performance categories, listed alphabetically by the surname of the performer, followed by the film title.

The nominations will be announced on Thursday 3 February 2022. The winners will be announced on Sunday 13 March.

Round Two voting, to determine the nominations in the member voted categories, will open between Friday 14 and Thursday 27 January 2022.

BEST FILM

15 films go through to the Round Two of voting, and five will be nominated. This is the only category voted for by all film voting members in all voting rounds. 217 films were submitted for consideration.

• Being The Ricardos
• Belfast
• CODA
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• House of Gucci
• King Richard
• Licorice Pizza
• No Time To Die
• The French Dispatch
• The Lost Daughter
• The Power of the Dog
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• tick tick...BOOM!
• West Side Story

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

20 films will go through to Round Two of voting. The top five films from the opt-in chapter vote in Round One automatically receive a nomination. The next ranking 15 films will be considered by a jury, who will vote for five nominations. 10 films will be nominated in this category. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner in this category. 64 films were submitted for consideration, all of which passed the BFI Diversity Standards.

• After Love
• Ali & Ava
• Belfast
• Benediction
• Boiling Point
• The Colour Room
• Cruella
• Cyrano
• The Duke
• The Electrical Life of Louis Wain
• Everybody's Talking About Jamie
• House of Gucci
• The King's Man
• Last Night in Soho
• Mothering Sunday
• Munich- The Edge of War
• No Time To Die
• Operation Mincemeat
• Passing
• Spencer

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

10 films have been longlisted, and five will be nominated. The longlist, nominees and winner in this category are voted on by a jury. 37 films were submitted for consideration.

• After Love
• Boiling Point
• Censor
• Dying to Divorce
• The Harder They Fall
• Hostile
• Keyboard Fantasies
• Passing
• The Power
• Sweetheart

FILM NOT IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE

15 films will progress to Round Two of voting, and five will be nominated. This category is voted for in all three Rounds by an opt-in Chapter. 50 films were submitted for consideration.

• A Hero
• Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
• Compartment No. 6
• Drive My Car
• Flee
• The Hand of God
• I'm Your Man
• Lamb
• The Most Beautiful Boy in the World
• Parallel Mothers
• Paris, 13th District
• Petite Maman
• Riders of Justice
• Titane
• The Worst Person in the World

DOCUMENTARY

15 films will progress to Round Two of voting. The top two films from the opt-in chapter vote in Round One automatically receive a nomination. The next ranking 13 films will be considered by a jury, who will vote for three nominations.  Five films will be nominated in this category. In Round three, the Documentary opt-in chapter will select the winner in this category.

• 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible
• Becoming Cousteau
• Billie Eilish: The World's A Little Blurry
• Cow
• Flee
• JFK Revisited: Through The Looking Glass
• Lady Boss: The Jackie Collins Story
• The Lost Leonardo
• The Most Beautiful Boy in the World
• The Real Charlie Chaplin
• The Rescue
• The Sparks Brothers
• Summer of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
• Tina
• The Velvet Underground

ANIMATED FILM

Seven films will progress to Round Two of voting, and four will be nominated. This category is voted for in all three Rounds by an opt-in Chapter. 14 films were submitted for consideration.

• Encanto
• Flee
• Luca
• The Mitchells vs the Machines
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Ron's Gone Wrong
• Sing 2

DIRECTOR

20 films will progress to Round Two of voting, and six will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is voted on by a jury (nominations) and Round Three is voted on by the general membership (winner). To determine this longlist, in Round One, the directing chapter voted; the top seven female and top seven male directed films were automatically longlisted. The remaining 3 female and 3 male directors were voted for by a Longlisting jury, who have considered the next 10 ranking female and male directed films. A nominating jury will vote for the six nominations. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 184 films were submitted for consideration.

• After Love
• Belfast
• CODA
• Don't Look Up
• Drive My Car
• Dune
• First Cow
• The Hand of God
• Happening
• King Richard
• Licorice Pizza
• The Lost Daughter
• Passing
• Petite Maman
• The Power of the Dog
• The Souvenir Part II
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• Titane
• West Side Story
• Zola

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 78 films were submitted for consideration.

• After Love
• Being The Ricardos
• Belfast
• The Card Counter
• C'mon C'mon
• Don't Look Up
• The Duke
• The French Dispatch
• The Hand of God
• King Richard
• Last Night in Soho
• Licorice Pizza
• Parallel Mothers
• Petite Maman
• The Worst Person in the World

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 62 films were submitted for consideration.

• CODA
• Cyrano
• Drive My Car
• Dune
• The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• The Green Knight
• House of Gucci
• The Last Duel
• The Lost Daughter
• No Time To Die
• Passing
• The Power of the Dog
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• tick tick...BOOM!
• West Side Story

LEADING ACTRESS

15 performances will progress to Round Two of voting, and six will be nominated. To determine this longlist, in Round One the acting chapter voted; the top 12 were automatically longlisted. The remaining three places have been voted on by the Longlisting jury, who have considered the next 10 placed performances from the chapter vote. Round Two is voted on by a jury who will vote for the six nominations. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner in this category. 82 performances were submitted for consideration.

• Jessica Chastain The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• Olivia Colman The Lost Daughter
• Lady Gaga House of Gucci
• Alana Haim Licorice Pizza
• Jennifer Hudson Respect
• Emilia Jones CODA
• Nicole Kidman Being The Ricardos
• Jennifer Lawrence Don't Look Up
• Frances McDormand The Tragedy of Macbeth
• Renate Reinsve The Worst Person in the World
• Claire Rushbrook Ali & Ava
• Joanna Scanlan After Love
• Kristen Stewart Spencer
• Tessa Thompson Passing
• Rachel Zegler West Side Story

LEADING ACTOR

15 performances will progress to Round Two of voting, and six will be nominated. To determine this longlist, in Round One the acting chapter voted; the top 12 were automatically longlisted. The remaining three places have been voted on by the Longlisting jury, who have considered the next 10 placed performances from the chapter vote. Round Two is voted on by a jury who will vote for the six nominations. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner in this category. 102 performances were submitted for consideration.

• Riz Ahmed Encounter
• Adeel Akhtar Ali & Ava
• Mahershala Ali Swan Song
• Javier Bardem Being The Ricardos
• Daniel Craig No Time To Die
• Benedict Cumberbatch The Power of the Dog
• Leonardo DiCaprio Don't Look Up
• Peter Dinklage Cyrano
• Adam Driver House of Gucci
• Andrew Garfield tick tick...BOOM!
• Stephen Graham Boiling Point
• Cooper Hoffman Licorice Pizza
• Joaquin Phoenix C'mon C'mon
• Will Smith King Richard
• Denzel Washington The Tragedy of Macbeth

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

15 performances will progress to Round Two of voting, and six will be nominated. To determine this longlist, in Round One the acting chapter voted; the top 12 were automatically longlisted. The remaining three places have been voted on by the Longlisting jury, who have considered the next 10 placed performances from the chapter vote. Round Two is voted on by a jury who will vote for the six nominations. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner in this category. 202 performances were submitted for consideration.

• Caitríona Balfe Belfast
• Cate Blanchett Don't Look Up
• Jessie Buckley The Lost Daughter
• Ana de Armas No Time To Die
• Ariana DeBose West Side Story
• Ann Dowd Mass
• Judi Dench Belfast
• Kirsten Dunst The Power of the Dog
• Aunjanue Ellis King Richard
• Kathryn Hunter The Tragedy of Macbeth
• Rita Moreno West Side Story
• Ruth Negga Passing
• Vinette Robinson Boiling Point
• Meryl Streep Don't Look Up
• Anya Taylor-Joy Last Night in Soho

SUPPORTING ACTOR

15 performances will progress to Round Two of voting, and six will be nominated. To determine this longlist, in Round One the acting chapter voted; the top 12 were automatically longlisted. The remaining three places have been voted on by the Longlisting jury, who have considered the next 10 placed performances from the chapter vote. Round Two is voted on by a jury who will vote for the six nominations. In Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner in this category. 283 performances were submitted for consideration.

• David Alvarez West Side Story
• Bradley Cooper Licorice Pizza
• Benicio del Toro The French Dispatch
• Jamie Dornan Belfast
• Ciarán Hinds Belfast
• Mike Faist West Side Story
• Andrew Garfield The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• Troy Kotsur CODA
• Jared Leto House of Gucci
• Woody Norman C’mon C’mon
• Al Pacino House of Gucci
• Jesse Plemons The Power of the Dog
• Mark Rylance Don't Look Up
• J.K. Simmons Being The Ricardos
• Kodi Smit-McPhee The Power of the Dog

CASTING

15 films will progress to Round Two of voting, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is voted on by a jury (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 89 films were submitted in this category. Casting Statements, written by the Casting Directors about the casting process, are provided by the entrants and shared with the jury in Round Two and published on BAFTA View.

• After Love
• Belfast
• Boiling Point
• CODA
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The Hand of God
• House of Gucci
• King Richard
• Licorice Pizza
• The Lost Daughter
• Passing
• The Power of the Dog
• tick tick...BOOM!
• West Side Story

CINEMATOGRAPHY

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 126 films were submitted for consideration.

• Belfast
• C'mon C'mon
• Cyrano
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The French Dispatch
• House of Gucci
• The Last Duel
• Last Night in Soho
• Licorice Pizza
• Nightmare Alley
• No Time To Die
• The Power of the Dog
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• West Side Story

COSTUME DESIGN

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 86 films were submitted for consideration.

• Being The Ricardos
• Belfast
• Cruella
• Cyrano
• Dune
• The Electrical Life of Louis Wain
• The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• The French Dispatch
• House of Gucci
• Last Night in Soho
• Licorice Pizza
• Nightmare Alley
• The Power of the Dog
• Spencer
• West Side Story

EDITING

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 154 films were submitted for consideration.

• Belfast
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The French Dispatch
• The Hand of God
• House of Gucci
• Last Night in Soho
• Licorice Pizza
• The Lost Daughter
• No Time To Die
• The Power of the Dog
• Summer of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
• tick tick...BOOM!
• Titane
• West Side Story

MAKE UP & HAIR

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 77 films were submitted for consideration.

• Being The Ricardos
• Coming 2 America
• Cruella
• Cyrano
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The Electrical Life of Louis Wain
• The Eyes of Tammy Faye
• The French Dispatch
• House of Gucci
• The King's Man
• The Last Duel
• Last Night in Soho
• No Time To Die
• West Side Story

ORIGINAL SCORE

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 101 films were submitted for consideration. Music cue sheets are provided by the entrants and published on BAFTA View for the music chapter in Rounds One and Two, and for all voting members in Round Three.

• Being The Ricardos
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The Electrical Life of Louis Wain
• The French Dispatch
• The Green Knight
• The Harder They Fall
• King Richard
• The Last Duel
• Last Night in Soho
• The Lost Daughter
• Nightmare Alley
• No Time To Die
• The Power of the Dog
• Spencer

PRODUCTION DESIGN

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 99 films were submitted for consideration.

• Being The Ricardos
• Belfast
• Cruella
• Cyrano
• Dune
• The Electrical Life of Louis Wain
• The French Dispatch
• House of Gucci
• The Last Duel
• Licorice Pizza
• Nightmare Alley
• No Time To Die
• The Power of the Dog
• The Tragedy of Macbeth
• West Side Story

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 56 films were submitted for consideration. Entrants can submit a supporting Statement and a show-reel of the SVFX work (up to five minutes in duration); this will be published on BAFTA View for the general voting membership in Round Three.

• Black Widow
• Cruella
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• Eternals
• Free Guy
• The French Dispatch
• Ghostbusters: Afterlife
• The King's Man
• Last Night in Soho
• The Matrix Resurrections
• No Time To Die
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
• The Suicide Squad
• Venom: Let There Be Carnage

SOUND

15 films will progress to Round Two, and five will be nominated. Round One is a chapter vote, Round Two is a chapter vote (nominations) and in Round Three, the general voting membership will select the winner. 126 films were submitted for consideration.

• A Quiet Place Part II
• Belfast
• CODA
• Don't Look Up
• Dune
• The French Dispatch
• Ghostbusters: Afterlife
• The Harder They Fall
• The Last Duel
• Last Night in Soho
• The Matrix Resurrections
• No Time To Die
• The Power of the Dog
• tick tick...BOOM!
• West Side Story

BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION

Six films have been longlisted, and three will be nominated. Rounds One and Two (longlist and nominations) are a jury vote, and an opt in chapter will select the winner in Round Three.

• Affairs of the Art
• Do Not Feed The Pigeons
• A Film About A Pudding
• Homebird
• Night of the Living Dread
• Robin Robin

BRITISH SHORT FILM

10 films have been longlisted, and five will be nominated. In Round One, members of the opt-in shorts chapter vote to form a preliminary longlist, and from the highest ranking films a jury vote for the longlist of 10 films. In Round Two, the jury vote on the nominations. In Round Three, an opt in chapter will select the winner.

• The Black Cop
• Three Meetings Of The Extraordinary Committee
• Femme
• The Palace
• Play It Safe
• Rough
• Roy
• Stuffed
• Punch-Drunk
• The Tunnel

---

Round Two voting, to determine the nominations in the member voted categories, will open between Friday 14 and Thursday 27 January 2022.

All longlisted films are available for voting members to watch on BAFTA View.

The EE Rising Star Award nominations will be announced on Tuesday 1 February 2022.

The EE British Academy Film Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday 3 February 2022.

Round Three voting, to determine the winners, will open between Wednesday 9 February and Tuesday 8 March 2022.

The EE British Academy Film Awards ceremony takes place on Sunday 13 March 2022.

---

 

A rock climbing adventure between two friends turns into a terrifying nightmare. After Kelly (Brittany Ashworth) captures the murder of her best friend on camera, she becomes the next target of a tight-knit group of friends who will stop at nothing to destroy the evidence and anyone in their way. Desperate for her safety, she begins a treacherous climb up a mountain cliff and her survival instincts are put to the test when she becomes trapped with the killers just 20 feet away.

Featuring: Brittany Ashworth, Ben Lamb, Louis Boyer, Nathan Welsh, Anaïs Parello, David Wayman

In Moonfall, a mysterious force knocks the Moon from its orbit around Earth and sends it hurtling on a collision course with life as we know it. With mere weeks before impact and the world on the brink of annihilation, NASA executive and former astronaut Jo Fowler (Academy Award® winner Halle Berry) is convinced she has the key to saving us all – but only one astronaut from her past, Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson, “Midway”) and a conspiracy theorist K.C. Houseman (John Bradley, “Game of Thrones”) believes her. These unlikely heroes will mount an impossible last-ditch mission into space, leaving behind everyone they love, only to find out that our Moon is not what we think it is.

Directed by Roland Emmerich and written by Roland Emmerich & Harald Kloser & Spenser Cohen, the film also stars Michael Peña, Charlie Plummer, Kelly Yu, Eme Ikwuakor, Carolina Bartczak, and Donald Sutherland.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced shortlists in 10 categories for the 94th Academy Awards®...

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Feature category for the 94th Academy Awards.  One hundred thirty-eight films were eligible in the category.  Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Ascension” 
“Attica”
“Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry”
“Faya Dayi”
“The First Wave”
“Flee”
“In the Same Breath”
“Julia”
“President”
“Procession”
“The Rescue”
“Simple as Water” 
“Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
“The Velvet Underground”
“Writing with Fire”

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Short Subject category for the 94th Academy Awards.  Eighty-two films qualified in the category.  Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Águilas”
“Audible”
“A Broken House”
“Camp Confidential: America’s Secret Nazis”
“Coded: The Hidden Love of J. C. Leyendecker”
“Day of Rage”
“The Facility”
“Lead Me Home”
“Lynching Postcards: “Token of a Great Day””
“The Queen of Basketball”
“Sophie & the Baron”
“Takeover”
“Terror Contagion”
“Three Songs for Benazir”
“When We Were Bullies”

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Fifteen films will advance to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category for the 94th Academy Awards.  Films from 92 countries were eligible in the category.

Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category. 

In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

Austria, “Great Freedom”
Belgium, “Playground”
Bhutan, “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom”
Denmark, “Flee”
Finland, “Compartment No. 6”
Germany, “I’m Your Man”
Iceland, “Lamb”
Iran, “A Hero”
Italy, “The Hand of God”
Japan, “Drive My Car”
Kosovo, “Hive”
Mexico, “Prayers for the Stolen”
Norway, “The Worst Person in the World”
Panama, “Plaza Catedral”
Spain, “The Good Boss”

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Ten films will advance in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 94th Academy Awards.  All members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view seven-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Sunday, January 30, 2022.  Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar® consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Coming 2 America”
“Cruella”
“Cyrano”
“Dune”
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
“House of Gucci”
“Nightmare Alley”
“No Time to Die”
“The Suicide Squad”
“West Side Story”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
Fifteen scores will advance in the Original Score category for the 94th Academy Awards.  One hundred thirty-six scores were eligible in the category.  Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:

“Being the Ricardos”
“Candyman”
“Don’t Look Up”
“Dune”
“Encanto”
“The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun”
“The Green Knight”
“The Harder They Fall”
“King Richard”
“The Last Duel”
“No Time to Die”
“Parallel Mothers”
“The Power of the Dog”
“Spencer”
“The Tragedy of Macbeth”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
Fifteen songs will advance in the Original Song category for the 94th Academy Awards.  Eighty-four songs were eligible in the category.  Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title:

“So May We Start?” from “Annette”
“Down To Joy” from “Belfast”
“Right Where I Belong” from “Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road”
“Automatic Woman” from “Bruised”
“Dream Girl” from “Cinderella”
“Beyond The Shore” from “CODA”
“The Anonymous Ones” from “Dear Evan Hansen”
“Just Look Up” from “Don’t Look Up”
“Dos Oruguitas” from “Encanto”
“Somehow You Do” from “Four Good Days”
“Guns Go Bang” from “The Harder They Fall”
“Be Alive” from “King Richard”
“No Time To Die” from “No Time to Die”
“Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)” from “Respect”
“Your Song Saved My Life” from “Sing 2”

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Animated Short Film category for the 94th Academy Awards.  Eighty-two films qualified in the category.  Members of the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Affairs of the Art”
“Angakusajaujuq: The Shaman’s Apprentice”
“Bad Seeds”
“Bestia”
“Boxballet”
“Flowing Home”
“Mum Is Pouring Rain”
“The Musician”
“Namoo”
“Only a Child”
“Robin Robin”
“Souvenir Souvenir”
“Step into the River”
“Us Again”
“The Windshield Wiper”

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Live Action Short Film category for the 94th Academy Awards.  One hundred forty-five films qualified in the category.  Members of the Short Films and Feature Animation, Directors, Producers and Writers Branches vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Ala Kachuu - Take and Run”
“Censor of Dreams”
“The Criminals”
“Distances”
“The Dress”
“Frimas”
“Les Grandes Claques”
“The Long Goodbye”
“On My Mind”
“Please Hold”
“Stenofonen”
“Tala’vision”
“Under the Heavens”
“When the Sun Sets”
“You’re Dead Helen”

SOUND
Ten films will advance in the Sound category for the 94th Academy Awards.  Members of the Sound Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.  All members of the Sound Branch will be invited to view eight-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films beginning Friday, January 28, 2022.  Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Belfast”
“Dune”
“Last Night in Soho”
“The Matrix Resurrections”
“No Time to Die”
“The Power of the Dog”
“A Quiet Place Part II”
“Spider-Man: No Way Home”
“tick, tick...BOOM!”
“West Side Story”

VISUAL EFFECTS
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 94th Academy Awards.  The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist.  All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 29, 2022.  Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Black Widow”
“Dune”
“Eternals”
“Free Guy”
“Ghostbusters: Afterlife”
“Godzilla vs. Kong”
“The Matrix Resurrections”
“No Time to Die”
“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”
“Spider-Man: No Way Home”

Nominations voting begins on Thursday, January 27, 2022, and concludes on Tuesday, February 1, 2022.

Nominations for the 94th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.

The 94th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby® Theatre at Hollywood & Highland® in Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide.

You are invited back to the magic. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore is in theaters April 15, 2022.

Professor Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) knows the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen) is moving to seize control of the wizarding world. Unable to stop him alone, he entrusts Magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) to lead an intrepid team of wizards, witches and one brave Muggle baker on a dangerous mission, where they encounter old and new beasts and clash with Grindelwald’s growing legion of followers. But with the stakes so high, how long can Dumbledore remain on the sidelines?

Boys Do Cry from Tom Campbell on Vimeo.

In the last 12 months in Australia 2,384 men have taken their own lives. That's an average of 7 men every day, making suicide the leading cause of death in Australian males aged 15-49. Some of these men might still be alive today if they had felt able to speak to someone about how they were feeling.

Generations of men have grown up with the idea that "Boys Don't Cry" - that when the going gets tough, a man should keep his feelings to himself, "man up" and put on a brave front. The Boys Do Cry project aims to put an end to this idea once and for all, so that when the going gets tough, men get talking.

Yes...it's that time of the year when John reveals his favourite films. We've seen most of them...and, surprise surprise, not one of them would make it onto ours or anyone else's pick-of-the year.

Special mention must go to Mandibles and Saint Narcisse...two utterly dreadful films!

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1
ANNETTE (Leos Carax) 
The best movie of the year is an insane, over-the-top, and thankfully self-indulgent Sparks Brothers musical about an angry macho performance artist, his opera-diva girlfriend, and their daughter, who is somehow born a puppet. See it by yourself so no one you know can possibly ruin this nutcase masterpiece. Oh yeah—it’s really long.

2
SUMMER OF SOUL (...OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED) (Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson)
Beautifully edited from forgotten footage left behind in a lab, the so-called Black Woodstock concert film, originally shot in 1969 in Harlem, rises to the top of 2021 with a vengeance. The camera practically goes down Clara Ward’s throat to show us just where her great gospel voice actually begins. Wait till you see Nina Simone—never angrier! She’ll kick your ass and so will this movie.

 

 

3
VORTEX (Gaspar Noé) 
The director’s most humane and unironic yet scarily claustrophobic feel-bad drama about death is filmed in split-screen Duo-Vision, so be prepared for twice the disturbing power of his other cinematic shockers.

 

 

4
FRANCE (Bruno Dumont) 
This psychological study of a fictitious popular female newscaster may start out conventionally, but the assured director’s long pauses and cruel plot twists quickly turn a quasi attack on the media and its ravenous consumers into a searing critique of both the tedium and the emotional risk of living in the public eye.

 

 

5
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BOY IN THE WORLD (Kristina Lindström, Kristian Petri)  
Imagine, today, openly gay director Luchino Visconti being allowed inside a high school to parade auditioning half-naked teenage boys in front of him for his film Death in Venice. This harrowing documentary explores the perils of teen stardom for the kid who got the part and went from being the most beautiful to the most fucked up.

6
MANDIBLES (Quentin Dupieux) 
The stupidest art film of the year, directed by a Gallic auteur who specializes in one-joke dumbbell comedies, about a giant fly and two French stooges, is also one of the funniest and most charming.

 

 

7
RED ROCKET (Sean Baker) 
Shocking? Refreshing? The male gaze comes out of today’s PC closet in an incredibly well-cast tale of a washed-up hetero male porn star who goes back to his meth-head ex-wife and mother-in-law in Texas to start a new dysfunctional life. Finally, fuckin’, fightin’, and frontal nudity are back on the art-house screen, where they belong.

8
THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH (Joel Coen) 
If Ingmar Bergman came back from beyond the grave today to direct Shakespeare on film, this is what it would look like. Kathryn Hunter as all three of the witches has to be seen to be believed.

9
SAINT-NARCISSE (Bruce LaBruce) 
The Canadian punk queer director’s most successfully realized movie, elegantly shot and seamlessly put together. Think Vali the Witch of Positano meets twin Joe Dallesandros. Catholic, sexy, and oh so deviantly devout.

10
THE ONANIA CLUB (Tom Six) 
OK, I’m really going out on a limb here, replacing Pedro Almodóvar’s exquisite Parallel Mothers, a film everybody should love, with this loathsome unreleased feature everybody will probably hate. The Human Centipede director tops himself with a story of rich Los Angeles women who gather together to masturbate while watching news footage of the world’s misery. Often wrongheaded but sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, it has been rejected by film distributors worldwide. All I can say is that the movie sure as hell delivers. You will probably never be able to see it. Maybe that’s a good thing . . . 

A story behind one of the most influential shows of all time. Here’s the official trailer from Being the Ricardos, in theaters December 10 and on Prime Video December 21.

Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) and Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem) are threatened by shocking personal accusations, a political smear and cultural taboos in Academy Award®-winning writer and director Aaron Sorkin’s behind-the-scenes drama Being the Ricardos. A revealing glimpse of the couple’s complex romantic and professional relationship, the film takes audiences into the writers’ room, onto the soundstage and behind closed doors with Ball and Arnaz during one critical production week of their groundbreaking sitcom “I Love Lucy.”

One of the most compelling and conflicted characters in Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters comes to the big screen as Oscar® winner Jared Leto transforms into the enigmatic antihero Michael Morbius. Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. While at first it seems to be a radical success, a darkness inside him is unleashed. Will good override evil – or will Morbius succumb to his mysterious new urges?

 

 

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Day 1 - 27 October 2021...

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Day 2 - 28 October 2021...

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Day 3 - 29 October 2021...

 

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Day 4 - 30 October 2021...

 

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Day 5 - 31 October 2021...

 

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Day 6 - 1 November 2021...

 

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Day 7 - 2 November 2021...

  

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Day 8 - 3 November 2021...

 

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Day 9 - 4 November 2021...

 

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Day 10 - 5 November 2021...

 

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Day 11 - 6 November 2021...

 

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Day 12 - 7 November 2021...

  

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Short films...

   

   

  

Experience the greatest love story ever told.

Directed By: Joe Wright

Cast: Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Bashir Salahuddin, and Ben Mendelsohn

A dream team of formidable female stars come together in a hard-driving original approach to the globe-trotting espionage genre in The 355.

When a top-secret weapon falls into mercenary hands, wild card CIA agent Mason “Mace” Brown (Oscar®-nominated actress Jessica Chastain) will need to join forces with rival badass German agent Marie (Diane Kruger, In the Fade), former MI6 ally and cutting-edge computer specialist Khadijah (Oscar® winner Lupita Nyong’o), and skilled Colombian psychologist Graciela (Oscar® winner Penélope Cruz) on a lethal, breakneck mission to retrieve it, while also staying one-step ahead of a mysterious woman, Lin Mi Sheng (Fan Bingbing, X-Men: Days of Future Past), who is tracking their every move.

As the action rockets around the globe from the cafes of Paris to the markets of Morocco to the wealth and glamour of Shanghai, the quartet of women will forge a tenuous loyalty that could protect the world—or get them killed.

by David Anderson Cutler

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It's been a long time coming, the wait is finally over...normal services have [partially] resumed...the BFI: London Film Festival is back!!!

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Day 1...

Via BFI Player...

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Day 2...

What we did watch...and, so glad we did!

 

What we wanted to watch...but, alas, bizarre time restrictions on the BFI player...and, a press screening that was overly attended. Note to BFI: prioritise the press!

 

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Day 3...

  

Via BFI Player...

  

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Day 4...

  

Via BFI Player...

 

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Day 5...

  

Via BFI Player...

 

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Day 6...

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Day 7...

 

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Day 8...

  

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Day 9...

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Day 10...

 

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Day 11...

  

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Day 12...

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Short films...

 

 

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The Matrix Resurrections in theaters and on HBO Max December 22 #TheMatrixMovie

From visionary filmmaker Lana Wachowski comes “The Matrix Resurrections,” the long-awaited fourth film in the groundbreaking franchise that redefined a genre. The new film reunites original stars Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss in the iconic roles they made famous, Neo and Trinity.

Directed by Academy Award® winner Steven Spielberg, from a screenplay by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award® winner Tony Kushner, “West Side Story” tells the classic tale of fierce rivalries and young love in 1957 New York City. This reimagining of the beloved musical stars Ansel Elgort (Tony); Rachel Zegler (María); Ariana DeBose (Anita); David Alvarez (Bernardo); Mike Faist (Riff); Josh Andrés Rivera (Chino); Ana Isabelle (Rosalía); Corey Stoll (Lieutenant Schrank); Brian d’Arcy James (Officer Krupke); and Rita Moreno (as Valentina, who owns the corner store in which Tony works). Moreno – one of only three artists to be honored with Academy®, Emmy®, GRAMMY®, Tony® and Peabody Awards – also serves as one of the film’s executive producers.

Bringing together the best of both Broadway and Hollywood, the film’s creative team includes Kushner, who also serves as an executive producer; Tony Award® winner Justin Peck, who choreographed the musical numbers in the film; renowned Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor and GRAMMY Award® winner Gustavo Dudamel, who helmed the recording of the iconic score; Academy Award®-nominated composer and conductor David Newman (“Anastasia”), who arranged the score; Tony Award®-winning composer Jeanine Tesori (“Fun Home,” “Thoroughly Modern Millie”), who supervised the cast on vocals; and Grammy®-nominated music supervisor Matt Sullivan (“Beauty and the Beast,” “Chicago”), who served as executive music producer for the film. The film is produced by Spielberg, Academy Award®-nominated producer Kristie Macosko Krieger and Tony Award®-winning producer Kevin McCollum. “West Side Story” has been adapted for the screen from the original 1957 Broadway show, with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and concept, direction and choreography by Jerome Robbins.

The Worst Person in The World is a modern dramedy about the quest for love and meaning in contemporary Oslo. It chronicles four years in the life of Julie (Reinsve), a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is.

Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.

Only in Theaters December 17

In NIGHTMARE ALLEY, an ambitious carny (Bradley Cooper) with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett) who is even more dangerous than he is.

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins, Rooney Mara, Ron Perlman, David Strathairn

Mejor película LGTBI del 69 Festival de San Sebastián en cualquiera de sus secciones oficiales a concurso y que refleje los valores y la realidad de lesbianas, gais, transexuales y bisexuales.

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Honek, 69. Donostia Zinemaldian, LGTBI filma bat sarituko du; lehietako sailetan aukeratuko duena eta Lesbianen, gayen, transexualen eta bisexualen balioak eta errealitatea islatuko dituena.

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Best LGTBI film of the 69th edition of the San Sebastian Festival in any of its official sections in competition. The film reflects the values and reality of lesbians, gays, transsexuals and bisexuals.

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Queer Lion 2021...

La Dernière Séance / The Last Chapter

by 

Gianluca Matarrese 

The Queer Lion 2021 goes to La dernière séance (The Last Chapter) by Gianluca Matarrese, for its ability to draw a portrait shifting from intimate to universal, thanks to the documentary form used with outstanding narrative cogency, to give voice to the necessary memory of a chapter of history – the era of Aids – that is far from over, while at the same time cleverly dismantling the taboo surrounding BDSM practices.

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The jury – composed by Ilaria Feole (journalist, film critic), Antonella Benanzato (journalist, artist), Angelica Lorenzon (interpreter) – chose the winner among the following 10 titles:

The Power of the Dog by Jane Campion (New Zealand, Australia, 125’, 2021)
Competencia oficial by Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn (Spain, Argentina, 114’, 2021)
Madres paralelas by Pedro Almodóvar (Spain, 120’, 2021)
Il bambino nascosto by Roberto Andò (Italy, France, 110’, 2021)
Il paradiso del pavone by Laura Bispuri (Italy, Germany, 89’, 2021)
El hoyo en la cerca by Joaquín del Paso (Mexico, Poland, 100’, 2021)
La santa piccola by Silvia Brunelli (Italy, 97’, 2021)
Deserto Particular by Aly Muritiba (Brazil, Portugal, 120’, 2021)
Il silenzio grande by Alessandro Gassmann (Italy, Poland, 106’, 2021)
La dernière séance by Gianluca Matarrese (Italy, France, 100’, 2021)

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Main Venice Awards

The Venezia 2021 Jury, chaired by Bong Joon Ho, with Saverio Costanzo, Virginie Efira, Cynthia Erivo, Sarah Gadon, Alexander Nanau, and Chloé Zhao, having viewed all 21 films in the competition, has decided:

Golden Lion for Best Film:
Happening (L'événement) by Audrey Diwan (France)

Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize:
The Hand of God (È stata la mano di Dio) by Paolo Sorrentino (Italy)

Silver Lion Award for Best Director:
Jane Campion for the film The Power of the Dog

Coppa Volpi for Best Actress:
Penélope Cruz in the film Parallel Mothers by Pedro Almodóvar

Coppa Volpi for Best Actor:
John Arcilla in the film On the Job: The Missing 8 by Erik Matti

Award for Best Screenplay:
Maggie Gyllenhaal for The Lost Daughter directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal

Special Jury Prize:
Il Buco by Michelangelo Frammartino

Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor or Actress:
Filippo Scotti in the film The Hand of God by Paolo Sorrentino

"Luigi De Laurentiis" Venice Award for a Debut Film:
Immaculate (Imaculat) by Monica Stan & George Chiper

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Orizzonti Section Awards

The Orizzonti 2021 Jury, chaired by Jasmila Žbanić, and comprised of Mona Fastvold, Shahram Mokri, Josh Siegel e Nadia Terranova, after screening the 19 films + 12 shorts in the competition, has decided to award:

Orizzonti Award for Best Film:
Pilgrims (Piligrimai) by Laurynas Bareiša (Lithuania)

Orizzonti Award for Best Director:
Full Time (À Plein Temps) by Éric Gravel (France)

Special Orizzonti Jury Prize:
The Great Movement (El Gran Movimiento) by Kiro Russo

Orizzonti Award for Best Actress:
Laure Calamy in the film Full Time (À Plein Temps) by Éric Gravel

Orizzonti Award for Best Actor:
Piseth Chhun in the film White Building (Bodeng Sar) by Kavich Neang

Orizzonti Award for Best Screenplay:
Peter Kerekes & Ivan Ostrochovský for 107 Mothers (Cenzorka)

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Here are the Queens...

15. Queer Lion Award: films in competition...

The Power of the Dog by Jane Campion (New Zealand, Australia, 125 ‘, 2021)
Set in the 20’s, the story centers on the Burbank brothers, Phil and George, well-off siblings owners of a Montana ranch overlooking the valley. The two could not be more different: whereas Phil is a bright but cruel man, with an overbearing and violent attitude, George is a stubborn and fussy, but always kind. When George secretly marries Rose, a young widow, Phil refuses to accept it and starts a ruthless war against her,  using her son Peter as a pawn.

Competencia oficial by Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn (Spain, Argentina, 114 ‘, 2021)
Looking for a prestige project that will leave a mark, a billionaire decides to finance a film. He hires renowned director Lola Cuevas, who, however, immediately finds herself in trouble, having to manage the clashing egos of the two leads, Hollywood star Félix and “serious theater” actor Iván. In order to try to create some chemistry between the two men, she comes up with a series of weird labours they will have to overcome.

Madres paralelas by Pedro Almodóvar (Spain, 120 ‘, 2021)
Two women from Madrid, both single and dealing with an unexpected pregnancy, find themselves giving birth on the same day in the same hospital: middle-aged Janis, comforts younger Ana, frightened about the future, and the words they exchange in those hours, in an anonymous hospital corridor, will end up changing their lives in an unexpected way.

Il bambino nascosto by Roberto Andò (Italy, France, 110 ‘, 2021)
Gabriele Santoro, a piano teacher at San Pietro a Majella Conservatory, lives in a low-class district in Naples. Silent, cultured, solitary, he is a man of hidden, secret passions. One morning a ten-year-old boy sneaks into his apartment and hides in it. Gabriele will soon discover that the child is the son of a Camorra man and that, as it often happens to those denied of their childhood, Ciro ignores the alphabet of feelings.

Il paradiso del pavone by Laura Bispuri (Italy, Germany, 89 ‘, 2021)
On a winter’s day, Nena gathers her family to celebrate her birthday. Il paradiso del pavone (The peacock’s paradise) is a small journey into the intimacy and authenticity of human beings: a film about an extended family in which everyone talks but no one really listens. Until an unexpected event forces the family members to look into each other’s eyes and reveal themselves for what they really are.

El hoyo en la cerca by Joaquín del Paso (Mexico, Poland, 100 ‘, 2021)
As every year, the Los Pinos school, a prestigious school of the confessional type, sends its students on retreat to the countryside. Under the watchful eye of teachers and priests, the children are led on the path of their physical and moral development. Through the gaze of several middle and upper class teenagers, the film shows how their upbringing affects the future of society itself.

La santa piccola by Silvia Brunelli (Italy, 97 ‘, 2021)
Mario and Lino, two friends, born and raised in the Sanità quarter in Naples, are two eighteen-year-olds who never stepped out from that micro-reality. They lead a monotonous life, until the sister of one of them convinces the locals that she has performed a miracle and she starts being whorshipped as a living Saint. The fate of her family abruptly changes and both boys find out that they are different from what they thought: Mario realizes that he is homosexual and in love with Lino, who, instead, does not notice it, and, actually tries to find a way out from the routine of his life.

Deserto Particular by Aly Muritiba (Brazil, Portugal, 120 ‘, 2021)
A lonely forty-year-old policeman lives in the rich south of Brazil. His heart beats for a woman he met online. Although they never met in person, their relationship becomes deeper and more and more solid. One day the woman disappears from the web and he decides to leave for Bahia and look for her. Upon reaching his destination, he will discover that the woman he loves actually is a man.

Il silenzio grande by Alessandro Gassmann (Italy, Poland, 106 ‘, 2021)
Villa Primic, once a luxurious mansion, now nothing more than a ruin that looks like something out of a ghost story, has been put up for sale. A painful decision, taken by Mrs. Rose Primic, and shared by Massimiliano (who comes out in a very touching way) and Adele, heirs to the dilapidated fortune of the family: the only one who is not happy at all is the head of the family, Valerio, who will discover that he never really got to know his dear ones and, perhaps, not even himself, to the point of reaching the bitter awareness that living does not mean being alive.

La dernière séance by Gianluca Matarrese (Italy, France, 100 ‘, 2021)
Bernard has just retired. He is 63 years old, he lives alone with his two cats and decides to move to a new house, the one where he will live the last chapter of his life. Preparing the boxes, he begins to make a selection: what to leave, what to bring? Bernard is my master and I am his slave. His last lover I help him to put the whip in a box, between fragments of his memories; memories of the loves that AIDS has stolen from his arms, the traces of an adoptive family that rejected him, of the rigid upbringing that forged him, of a mother and father he never knew. Our sexual games are the chances for two generations to meet: between a whiplash and a leather harness we discuss about love, death, the AIDS epidemic in the Eighties, his new life project, about us. The wounds and grave goods of a survivor, a cry for life in the light of sexual impulses.

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15. Queer Lion Award: out of competition...

La scuola cattolica by Stefano Mordini (Italy, 106’, 2021)
In a residential area of Rome, there is a well-known Catholic school for boys, where children from the cream of the crop of upper-middle class are educated. Their families feel that in that context, children can grow up protected from the turmoil that society is going through, and that that rigid education will open the doors to a bright future for them.

 Ariaferma by Leonardo Di Costanzo (Italy, Switzerland, 117 ‘, 2021)
An old nineteenth-century prison, located in an inaccessible and unspecified Italian area, is about to be closed. Due to bureaucratic problems, transfers are blocked and a dozen of prisoners await for their new destination, along with the few agents left. In a suspended atmosphere, the rules of separation are loosened and new forms of relationships seem to blossom among the men.

Bodeng sar (White Building) by Kavich Neang (Cambodia, France, China, Qatar, 90 ‘, 2021)
Growing up in Phnom Penh’s historic White Building, 20-year-old Samnang, along with two friends, Tol and Ah Kha, dreams of becoming a dance star thanks to a TV contest. All changes when, unexpectedly, Ah Kha reveals that he will soon be leaving Cambodia.

Isolation by Michele Placido, Julia von Heinz, Olivier Guerpillon, Jaco Van Dormael, Michael Wintebottom (Italy, Uk, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, 88’, 2021)
A collective documentary film, from five european directors asked to witness the revolutions and dramas caused in their own Countries by the pandemic; among them, “Two Fathers”, directed by Julia von Heinz (20’). After the death of his father, Hans-Michael von Heinz, the director finds out the truth about her parent true sexual identity. In order to know more, she starts emailing persons who got to know him over the last years, among them his closest friend, director Rosa von Praunheim.

Caveman – Il gigante nascosto by Tommaso Landucci (Italy, Switzerland, 91’, 2021)
It has been almost thirty years since Filippo Dobrilla started to sculpt a giant male nude inside a cave 650 metres deep in the Apuan Alps. This almost inaccessible place has jealously protected his secret: his youthful passion for a fellow climber, a passion Filippo was only able to indulge in here in the intimacy of this cave. Even after it was over and ever since then, Filippo has been returning regularly to the cave to work on the most important sculpture of his life, a masterpiece no one will see.

Techno, mama by Saulius Baradinskas (Lithuania, 18’, 2021)
Nikita loves to listen to techno music and dreams to go to Berlin and visit the famous club “Berghain”. His mother Irena doesn’t know about his son’s dreams and soon enough their mutual expectations will clash.

In The Mist by Tung-yen Chou (Taipei, 15’)
Theater and new media director Chou Tung-Yen touches on the unspeakable life experience of the gay community culture, exploring a male sauna through poetic lenses to take a peek into something that’s hidden under the desire—the love without love.

Era ieri (It Was Yesterday) by Valentina Pedici (Italy, 14’, 2016)
13-year-old Giò and Matteo are best friends. A small strip of land between the sky and the sea in Southern Italy is their kingdom. They head a group of boys, they do some petty thefts to feel grown up in an age of hope and childish games.

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Retiring to his cottage in Dorset Lawrence hopes to forget his past fighting in Arabia but soon he is drawn into political intrigue and his many enemies begin to plot against him. Was a motorcycle crash an accident or attempt at assassination by the British Secret Service? "Lawrence: After Arabia" tells the story of the last years of the life of the 20th century hero, T.E. Lawrence - Lawrence of Arabia. Lawrence was a writer and poet with friendships with GB Shaw, Thomas Hardy, Henry Williamson, EM Forster, Siegfried Sassoon and others but he was also a political agitator and good friends with Winston Churchill. Lawrence lived at Cloud's Hill, his simple cottage near Bovington in Dorset where he spent years escaping the "Lawrence of Arabia" and hero epithets by using pseudonyms and changing his name. He still had strong ties with his Arab friends, was building bridges with Mosely and the Blackshirts and was also be prepared for a leadership position in the Secret Service. In common with many other soldiers, he suffered from depression and post traumatic stress disorder. His uncompromising and direct manner and beliefs created many powerful and influential enemies. Chronologically the story follows on from David Lean's "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) with the late Peter O'Toole playing Lawrence and "Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia" (1990) with Ralph Fiennes who played the title role. The screenplay is a British period drama and a character study of a man that uses extracts from letters and other contemporaneous documents from the period to reconstruct the final years of Lawrence's life, the accident, inquest and his funeral and why the authorities want to eliminate him. — Mark J.T. Griffin

This has got to be seen...to be believed!

Watch the new trailer for "The Last Duel" a tale of betrayal & vengeance set against the brutality of 14th century France directed by Ridley Scott and starring Jodie Comer, Adam Driver, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. In theaters October 15.

The winners are:

Palme d’Or
Titane

Grand Prix (two winners)
Asghar Farhadi, A Hero
Juho Kuosmanen, Compartment No. 6

Best Director
Leos Carox, Annette

Best Screenplay
Hamaguchi Ryusuke and Takamasa Oe, Drive My Car

Best Actress
Renate Reinste, The Worst Person in the World

Jury Prize
Memoria, Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Jury Prize
Ahed’s Knee, Nadav Lapid

Best Actor
Caleb Landry Jones, Nitram

Honorary Palme d’Or
Marco Bellocchio

Camera d’Or
Murina, Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic

There seems to be a little trouble in the Queer Palm camp...press coverage has been minimal and their social media activity has been meagre...they seem to have abandoned Twitter altogether!

The winners...

Divide (The) by Catherine Corsini

And, 2 short films won:

Frida by Aleksandra Odic

Fall of the Swift (The) by Gonzalo Quincoces

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Here's an article we found...it explains the apparent dis-interest...but, it doesn't say why!!!

Cannes cold shoulders its 'Queer Palm' prize...

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210716-cannes-cold-shoulders-its-queer-palm-prize

It has been won by big-name Hollywood directors and is headed by one of France's top comic stars, but the "Queer Palm" prize which celebrates LGBTQ movies at Cannes still has no official place at the world's top film festival.

Awards for films with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer content are already an integral part of other major movie gatherings, including Berlin which has handed out its "Teddy Award" since 1987, and made it part of its official programme.

Not so at Cannes, where the festival's leadership won't even allow the "Queer Palm" -- which has been running for a decade -- to set up shop in its main building, the Palais du Festival.

"We're not ugly ducklings," actor and director Nicolas Maury, who heads up the "Queer Palm" jury this year, told AFP [Agence France-Presse].

Maury, one of the stars of hit Netflix show "Call My Agent", added: "It's a central prize that doesn't deserve to be sidelined. I think it would be a good idea for it to be part of the official ceremony."

Maury said the award, created in 2010 and independently financed, is aimed at "courageous films that feature openness and humanity" where people who are often discriminated against "are finally noticed and listened to".

Past winners include Todd Haynes for "Carol" and Xavier Dolan for "Laurence Anyways". "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" by Celine Sciamma won at the last Cannes in 2019.

This year's shortlist of 26 movies includes Paul Verhoeven's "Benedetta" -- vying for the Palme d'Or in the main Cannes competition -- which tells the story of a lesbian nun in 17th-century Italy.

"Compartment No 6" by Juho Kuosmanen of Finland and "The Divide" by French director Catherine Corsini, which both feature lesbian lead characters, are also in the running, as is the gender-fluid shocker "Titane" by Julia Ducournau and several others spread over the festival's various categories.

"Queer Palm" founder Franck Finance-Madureira told AFP he was delighted that this year's Cannes selections made for rich pickings for his prize shortlist.

"This shows that queer themes are more and more prevalent in films," he said.

© 2021 AFP

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