WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - This Is My Desire

A first feature from two brothers up next.

This Is My Desire (Eyimofe)
Dir. Arie & Chuko Esiri / Dur. 114 mins
Strand:- Journey

In A Nutshell:- Factory technician Mofe and hairdresser Rosa plan their escapes from Nigeria to new lives in Europe in these two (slightly) linked tales.

The Good:- For me, this was almost the flipside to A Common Crime. While there are maybe only one or two key incidents that happen to Mofe and Rosa to put obstacles in the way of their path to a better life, their day to day lives are compelling in a way that A Common Crime’s protagonist wasn’t. There’s a nice naturalistic style to it as well - there’s no incidental music throughout and it doesn’t need it with the character’s lives being complex enough to provoke the needed emotional response. Jude Akuwudike and Temi Ami-Williams each project a sort of dignity and despair that shines through in their respective segments. The supporting characters are strong too with nice nuance to them - the landlord who links both stories is both helpful when it serves his needs and when it doesn’t; opportunistic maybe rather than completely unpleasant.

The Bad:- Honestly, can’t think of much on this one. I was caught up in it from start through to finish.

The Verdict:- Alternatively moving and heartbreaking, this portrait of two people trapped by circumstances and trying to escape to a better life by whatever means necessary is a strong debut from brothers Arie & Chuko Esiri. I’d definitely be interested in seeing what they come up with next.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Sound Of The Future

Documentary time once again and today’s effort is...well…

Sound Of The Future
Dir. Matt Hulse / Dur. 102 mins
Strand:- Debate

In A Nutshell:- A film about childhood, making films, punk and, well, mostly Matt Hulse.

The Good:- This definitely fits into that “quirky” bracket that I like to find at the Festival. It’s ostensibly about the director’s pre-teenage punk band that he formed with his siblings but it’s also about the difficulties he had in trying to make a film out of it while simultaneously being about the artificial nature of documentary and just “art” in general. The band (The Hippies) are a slice of “so bad they’re good fun” juvenilia (in a way, they put me slightly in mind of toe-curlingly-bad-but-weirdly-appealing band The Shaggs) and the kids that they draft in to play (with multiple kids doubling up as each member of the band at various points) are clearly enjoying themselves. It somehow manages to be fairly egotistical but self-deprecating at the same time and somehow manages to get away with it. It propels you along for the running time without really necessarily having much of a defined point to make.

The Bad:- Well, as I just indicated there, I’m not really sure what the film is actually about. There are some musings on the difficulties of family, especially families that are made more complicated by divorce and step parents but I didn't really feel like any of the points it seemed to make were what the documentary was ultimately about. Maybe, though, that neatly encapsulates the spirit of 70s punk which is attempting to evoke and rekindle.

The Verdict:- I enjoyed it ultimately. I’m not sure that the film succeeds in making the points that it wants to make but I’m not sure that it even knows what those points are itself. It’s more about the ride than the destination.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Wildfire

Back into the realm of fiction again today with this first time feature film.

Wildfire
Dir. Cathy Brady / Dur. 85 mins
Strand:- Dare

In A Nutshell:- Kelly returns home to her sister Lauren in Northern Ireland, having been missing presumed dead, stirring up old family business…

The Good:- First time feature director Cathy Brady does a good job of drawing you into the lives of these sisters, damaged by their loss of their mother and the ambiguity surrounding it that is still a source of trauma for the both of them. The gradual unfolding of the full details of what has gone on in the past works well and is drip-fed out at the right pace - it’s not about surprise revelation but about the characters coming to terms with and accepting what has gone on in their past. Nora-Jane Noone and Nika McGuigan are the core of the film and do a sterling job of making the characters compelling enough for you to stick with them on their journey.

The Bad:- I’m not 100% convinced about the actual ending - the emotional resolution for the characters works but the specifics of how they get there feel a bit like they’re from another film; it just felt slightly like it was stretching things a little bit in order to get the resolution. As so often in this section, it’s a minor complaint.

The Verdict:- It’s a character piece fuelled by sterling performances form the two main leads who convincingly portray the complex relationships that can exist between siblings, especially those who have been through traumatic events. The tight running time keeps the interest going through the (partially successful, in my opinion) ending.

Sombre Note:- This film was Nika McGuigan’s final film before her tragic death in 2019 at the age of 33, having suffered and recovered leukaemia as a child but ultimately dying from cancer-related illness. The film is dedicated to her memory.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Ultraviolence

We’re still in documentary territory and once again dealing with a topic that sadly still needs addressing in 2020.

Ultraviolence
Dir. Ken Fero / Dur. 75 mins
Strand:- Debate

In A Nutshell:- There have been, since 1969, over two thousand deaths in UK police custody. This film looks in detail some of those who died between 1995 and 2006.

The Good:- I hesitate to use the term “good” here as much of this film is powerful, affecting stuff in a deeply harrowing way. The film contains actual footage of the deaths of black men in police custody in the UK and it is as upsetting as you would expect. It’s not just about the moment of their deaths, though - the film follows their families and the impact on them as they try and ultimately fail to gain justice from a system which is set up to protect those who are part of it. There has been a lot of coverage of the impact of institutional racism and this film brings specific human faces to that. It’s impossible for anyone with an ounce of empathy not to feel rage and disgust at the abuse and indifference on display which leads to so many unnecessary deaths; a rage and disgust which is compounded by the IPCC and CPS doing their level best to sweep it all under the carpet.

The Bad:- It’s an important film that needs to be seen but there are some stylistic choices that I wasn’t a fan of. The bluntness of the fullscreen titles that show up a lot felt like they detracted from rather than enhanced the message. The animated sequences used to illustrate sections for switch obviously there was no footage felt too weirdly cartoony for such a serious subject. There’s also an attempt to link in state sanctioned war (Vietnam, Iraq) as another consequence of the racism inherent in the systems which are legacy of imperialistic times but it feels like it’s too big a topic to cover so the link just seems tangential and detracts from the focus somewhat.

The Verdict:- It’s framed as a personal essay from a filmmaker to his son and, in that respect, it works very well, covering a highly emotive topic with the right level of emotional investment. It might make the occasional stylistic and thematic misstep but the message is important and one that needs to be seen.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Time

It’s definitely the year of the documentary and here comes another one; again, a subject that is currently being highlighted more.

Time
Dir. Garrett Bradley / Dur. 81 mins
Strand:- Debate

In A Nutshell:- Told through the many home videos kept over the years as well as current interviews, Time tells the story of Sibil Fox Richardson who is attempting to secure her husband’s release from prison after being sentenced to 65 years without parole for robbery.

The Good:- It’s a subject that is very much to the fore of people’s minds much more than it used to be in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement:- the fact that BIPOC prisoners on average get far longer sentences for crimes. In a desperate move, Fox and her husband Rob planned and committed a robbery. Fox served three and a half years; at the time of the documentary being made, Rob is coming up on twenty years behind bars. What shines through is the sheer impressiveness of Fox Rich (as she styles herself). Not only has she campaigned tirelessly since her own release for a reduction in her husband’s sentence but she runs her own business ventures as well as raising six children on her own. That passion and determination is clear as is, unfortunately, the anger and weariness at a system that is largely indifferent to the injustice being committed here. 

The Bad:- This is purely a personal criticism; at times, the voiceover veered a little too far into the evangelical for my liking but really that’s just me. I largely prefer my documentaries to be thin on editorialising so that IO can judge for myself on the facts presented.

The Verdict:- At times heartbreaking but ultimately heart-warming, the film does an effective job of highlighting the plight of not just those prisoners given unjust sentences but also the impact that it has on their families and loved ones. Definitely one to watch.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Mogul Mowgli

We enter that time where the festival has officially ended but, because I’ve watched so many films, you’ll still be getting festival updates for the next few weeks. Strap in (or snooze and come back in November when it’s far less festival-y. But probably still film-y).

Unsurprisingly this year, given the focus that Black Lives Matter has rightly received, a number of the films focus on questions of identity and race. Here’s one of them.


Mogul Mowgli
Dir. Bassam Tariq / Dur. 89 mins
Strand:- Dare

In A Nutshell:- British-Pakistani rapper Zed returns home where he struggles with connecting with his family while coping with a debilitating illness.

The Good:- Given that it’s co-written by and stars Riz Ahmed who has himself been rapping since he was a teenager, this very much feels like a passion project. The film examines what it means to be both British and Pakistani and the competing pull of family, tradition and religion alongside that of modern Western culture (US as much as British given that hip hop originated there). Ahmed is great in this - he’s in virtually every shot and the film is very much about placing us as much as possible in Zed/Zaheer’s head; an effect enhanced by being shot in tight 4:3 rather than widescreen* and also by the use of a lot of hallucinatory visions that bleed in and out of Zed’s day to day life. The mixture of memory and symbolism, particularly with the masked figure that haunts Zed throughout the film, give an interesting visual texture to the film and help to highlight the split that Zed feels. There are some moments of comedy as well in the form of rival rapper RPG’s truly atrocious music video, highlighting all the dreadful misogynist stereotypes that can still be found in certain examples of the genre.

The Bad:- Some of the dream sequence usage feels a little over the top at times and it gives the film a bit more of a rough and ready feel. Also, it focuses so strongly on Zed that a couple of the other characters feel a little thinly drawn.

The Verdict:- Ahmed is great and the film wisely leans into his ability to sell this throughout. An interesting and visually different take on British race identity.



*There seems to be a bit of a resurgence of shooting in 4:3; last year’s Bait shot on 16mm film to great effect and A Common Crime, reviewed last time, also used that aspect ratio.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Siberia / A Common Crime

One of the things I’d decided for this blog was for it to be largely celebrating things that I enjoy (not uncritically mind) rather than just trashing things I didn't. What makes it tricky when you’ve picked out a load of unknown films from a film festival and set yourself the task of reviewing them all, is that you’re likely to come across films you don’t like. I still try and find something positive to say about them films I don't like as well as acknowledging that the things I enjoy might not be perfect (hence The Good / The Bad format) but there are some I struggle with. There’s plenty of negativity out there and I’m not completely happy about doing a full blog review of Honeymood when I didn’t enjoy it so I’m going to bundle these two together. It means that I haven’t just ignored them but equally they haven’t had a full blog to themselves.

Siberia
Dir. Abel Ferrera / Dur. 92 mins
Strand:- Dare

In A Nutshell:- Willem Dafoe has a bar in Siberia and goes off and does...some stuff?

The Verdict:- Willem Dafoe is always great and I’ll watch him in anything (given that last year’s festival featured featured him as a stranded lighthouse keeper, I’m beginning to think that my festival spirit animal is Willem Dafoe In Extreme Circumstances) and I also love films that fully embrace the surreal (big David Lynch fan) but this just didn't do it. I found the whole thing incoherent, unpleasant and annoying with some truly dreadful dialogue and, if I hadn’t been watching it as part of the festival, I'd have just switched it off.


A Common Crime (Un crimen común)
Dir. Francisco Márquez / Dur. 96 mins
Strand:- Dare

In a Nutshell:- A woman ignores the late knocking at the door of her housekeeper’s son and must deal with the effect this inaction has on her…

The Verdict:- I get that this was a slow burn study of one woman’s deterioration following her choice to not intervene and that it highlights some of the injustices and class/wealth disparity problems prevalent in modern day Argentina but I just found the whole thing to be so slow and lacking in much resembling any incident that I spent almost the entire deathly bored. Elisa Carricajo’s performance is great but she literally has nothing to work with. Again, if not part of the fest, I wouldn't have stuck around with this one.


OK, a couple of disappointments out of the way - let’s get things back on track next time.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Wolfwalkers

The only animated feature of the festival for me - Pixar’s newest offering Soul is also premiering but only in cinema screenings so, as I’m online only this year, I’ll be waiting for that one to show up on streaming services.

Wolfwalkers
Dir. Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart / Dur. 100 mins
Strand:- Family

In A Nutshell:- In 17th century Kilkenny under the watchful eye of Oliver Cromwell, a young huntress befriends a wild girl rumoured to be part of a tribe of the legendary wolfwalkers.

The Good:- From Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon who produced The Secret Of Kells and Song Of The Sea (of which I’ve seen) and The Breadwinner (which I have) comes this tale mixing fantasy and historical fact (in sometimes surprising ways). The animation itself is gorgeous - the sort of stylised 2D animation favoured by someone like Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack, Dexter’s Laboratory, Hotel Transylvania) which is very appealing. In some instances, there are lingering traces of the sort of linework you see in initial rough animatics and it lends a very distinctive style to the whole thing. In many ways, it resembles a Disney style film - no bad thing in terms of drawing in a younger audience more used to that sort of film making. The young cast are lively and ably assisted by the likes of Sean Bean and Tommy Tiernan (providing some nice comic relief). There’s also some nice stylistic touches in the visual representations of how wolves and wolfwalkers see the world and experience smells and sounds that give another layer to the appealing visuals.

The Bad:- The story itself is not overly surprising, narratively speaking. In terms of kids, nothing we haven’t seen many times before - hunters ruthlessly pursuing nature, nature being given the room to live and fight back. It’s a valid message, of course, but it’s one that we’ve seen time and time again in many an animated film. It’s also a fairly conventional storyline with very little in the way of surprises.

The Verdict:- Animation-wise, it’s a triumph. The style is crisp and appealing with some enjoyable stylistic touches that elevate it above the norm. It’s let down a little by some less than surprising storytelling but that’s not enough to detract from what is an enjoyable animated film.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Shirley

Not a horror film per se but definitely one with a horror adjacent theme to it…

Shirley
Dir. Josephine Decker /  Dur. 107 mins
Strand:- Dare

In A Nutshell:- Horror author Shirley Jackson and her husband Stanley’s somewhat twisted relationship is brought to the fore when newlyweds Fred and Rosie come to live with them.

The Good:- Although different in tone and style, in a way, this film put me in mind of last year’s Mr Rogers biopic A Beautiful Day In The Neighbourhood (starring Tom Hanks) in that, rather than being a traditional telling of the subject’s life, you learn about them through their interactions with another character - in this case, largely Odessa Young’s Rosie. Elisabeth Moss starts here as Shirley and, as always, she is a powerhouse on screen - the sort of presence that it’s impossible to take your eyes off. (That said, it would be nice for once to see her in a role where she’s not constantly in torment and on the breakdown -  not a criticism, she does it brilliantly but it would be good what else she can do for once.) It’s a fascinating piece, particularly given the oddly twisted dynamic and ongoing power struggle between Shirley and her husband Stanley (Michael Stuhlbarg), with each one seeming to have a hold over the other at various times (with Stanley being the far more controlling of the two overall). There are also nice stylistic touches used to illustrate Shirley’s creative processes and how she sees potential creative material - it’s a nice visual illustration of the writing process.

The Bad:- It’s only a minor point but Logan Lerman’s Fred feels like little more than a cypher; he doesn’t have as much to do in the story, granted, but he feels a little thinly drawn overall. (Also, not bad as such but worth noting - when you have characters named Fred and Rose, there’s an unfortunate association there for a UK audience...)

The Verdict:- A non-traditional biopic anchored by another storming performance from Elisabeth Moss and bolstered by good chemistry between her and both Odessa Young and Michael Stuhlbarg. Definitely one worth checking out.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Relic

One of the few full-on “cult” efforts showing at the fest this year - who doesn’t like a bit of horror? (Well, yeah, lots of people, I know, but you get what I was doing there as an opener anyway.)

Relic
Dir. Natalie Erika James / Dur. 89 mins
Strand:- Cult

In A Nutshell:- A woman and her daughter travel back to the family home when her mother goes missing…

The Good:- There’s been a resurgence in a more thoughtful strand of horror in recent years; the sort of horror that relies on a creeping and building sense of unease and disquiet rather than gore and jump scares and that’s no bad thing*. Relic is very much in the vein of films like Hereditary and The Babadook - the scares come from preying on fears of loneliness, grief, etc. - in Relic’s case, it’s the fear of old age robbing us of who we are. There’s an effective building of tension and some suitably creepy imagery throughout to build the disquiet and Emily Mortimer, Robyn Niven and Bella Heathcote all give affecting performances as the three generations of the family trapped in this escalating situation. There are some nicely disconcerting and claustrophobic scenes involving the house itself later in the film.

The Bad:- There’s a slight lack of focus and clarity in the nature of the threat itself. Without wanting to say too much, there are appearances and sightings of something that don’t seem to fully pay off, with the emphasis on the horror of ageing itself leading to a feeling that some of the sequences are red herrings for the sake of injecting some more traditional horror scares into the film (maybe I missed something though). It’s a minor complaint though overall.

The Verdict:- Another string entry in the current crop of more thoughtful and reflective horror films that seem to have cropped up in the last five to ten years. A few unfocussed moments don’t detract from what is effectively upsetting film. I for one am happy to keep horror films that are at least trying to do something outside of the traditional horror formula



*I’m not saying that I don’t like a gory horror film with plenty of jump scares but they have to be done well and preferably with humour too. Gore for gore's sake doesn't appeal - I’ll take an Evil Dead 2 over a Hostel any day of the week.

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - The Reason I Jump

So Day Three got off to a disappointing start with yesterday’s entry but we’re more than back on track with today’s offering.

The Reason I Jump
Dir. Jerry Rothwell / Dur. 82 mins
Strand:- Journey

In A Nutshell:- Based on a memoir by thirteen year old Naoki Higashida, this documentary follows five teens and highlights their perspectives on being nonspeaking autistic young people.

The Good:- Using the memoir as a framing device works brilliantly as it provides the non-autisitic viewer with the perspective needed to try and understand the headspace of these young people from arounds the world (the film follows teens in the UK, US, India and Sierra Leone). Each of them has a different way of processing (or not) what is going on around them and of communicating with the outside world - whether it be through art, spelling boards or alive of green power boxes. What I thought came across really well was the attempt to highlight the minds behind the behaviour and the ways in which those minds reach out with communication methods that most of us don’t recognise, for example, Amrit using her art as a method of describing what she is experiencing. In the case of Ben, it showed the eloquence that was hidden by his inability to use speech as his primary method of communication and how, once the spelling boards were discovered, communication with non-autistic people was unlocked for him.

The Bad:- The only thing that I felt was slightly lacking in the film was more exploration of Jestina’s voice. The film, rightly, highlights the important work that her parents have done in their local community in Sierra Leone to promote a more positive view of autism amongst an area that still has strongly superstitious views about the condition but I felt like we didn't get as much insight into her as we did with the other people.

The Verdict:- It’s great - thoughtful and uplifting, compelling all the way through and, at 82 mins, gets to the heart of it without outstaying its welcome. It’s the sort of the film that gives you a greater understanding of people who see the world in a very different way and that’s exactly the sort of thing that I love to find at the festival. Having mentioned it last time, I really am beginning to think that 2020 is the year of the documentary...

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Honeymood

Day Three begins and… well, it was bound to happen at some point.

Honeymood
Dir. Talya Lavie / Dur. 90 mins
Strand:- Laugh

In A Nutshell:- A couple’s wedding night is disrupted by the gift of a ring from the groom’s ex which leads them to trek out onto the streets of Jerusalem…

The Good:- I’m not going to lie, this bit is a bit of a struggle to kick off as I just did not enjoy the film at all. I’ll say that, to its credit, the cast are strong and fully commit to their roles and the film makes a credible stab at trying to create rounded out characters rather than one dimensional rom-com style caricatures. Groom Noam’s parents are an enjoyable couple even if his mother does lean somewhat heavily into overprotective stereotyping.

The Bad:- I just didn’t like the main characters pretty much from the off and so found the whole thing increasingly tiresome as it dragged on, with the pair of them stretching out this night in the city. For me, it wasn’t anywhere near as charming as it thought it was and, as it veered close to farce, it really lost me. I’m a bit fussy about farce / cringe humour - there have to be characters I’m really invested in for me to get through the cringe moments and there wasn’t that for me here. I’m a big musical fan (as I’ve no doubt banged on about on here before) and not even the presence of a sudden song and dance number could save this me - partly because it came out of nowhere and partly because it was hot and lit so horribly that it looked like it had been lifted from a cheap TV movie.

The Verdict:- Sadly, a proper miss for me on this one. It’s a shame because, this year, the two strands that I like to see quite few entries each from (Laugh and Cult) have got three entries each (yes, I am booked for all three in each strand) so it’s disappointing when one of them turns out not to be that great. Still, this is part of the joy of the festival - for every duffer, there’s several that are great. Which, as it turns out, is a nice segue into our next entry...

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - The Painter And The Thief

Three films down and already the second documentary of the fest (with another one coming up on Day Three). It seems that 2020 could be the Year Of The Documentary.

The Painter And The Thief
Dir. Benjamin Ree / Dur. 107 mins
Strand:- Create

In A Nutshell:- The story of the unlikely friendship that develops between an artist and the man who steals her painting.

The Good:- It’s an intriguing concept to start with:- an artist has two works stolen from an art gallery and, at the trial for one of thieves, asks him why he did it; his answer, “Because it was beautiful” prompts her to ask if she can paint his portrait and a surprising friendship develops. It’s well paced and structured - narratively, it starts following events from the painter Barbora’s point of view before doubling back and following things from the art thief Bertil’s point of view. It’s a fascinating character study and delves into what it is that brings these two seemingly disparate people together into a friendship that surprises both of them with its intensity. There’s an eloquence to Bertil and a destructiveness within Barbora that bridges the gap between their different lives. There are also some moments of fairly intense emotion, particularly in Bertil’s reaction when Barbora reveals her first completed portrait to him.

The Bad:- It’s a very minor criticism but, while satisfying, the ending feels oddly convenient and smacks a little of maybe some intervention on the part of the filmmakers (certainly in regards to people revealing information to each other) in order to give them the ending it needs. This is a really minor point though and in no way detracted from my overall enjoyment of the film.

The Verdict:- I know that I’m only three films in but this one will definitely be on my “Highlights Of The Fest” list at the end. I was utterly riveted and really moved by this story of two people finding a deep connection in the most unlikely of circumstances. Highly and thoroughly recommended. (I’ve got a few more documentaries on the list so maybe 2020 is going to be The Year Of The Documentary…)

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Kajillionaire

The second film of Day One and, given that this one used the words “offbeat” and Deadpan” in the listing on the BFI site, it was pretty much right in my wheelhouse*.

Kajillionaire
Dir. Miranda July / Dur. 104 mins
Strand:- Laugh

In A Nutshell:- Low levels grifters Richard and Theresa live a hand to mouth life with their adult daughter Old Dolio. During an elaborate luggage scam, that arrival of someone new into their lives starts to chance things…

The Good:- This is director Miranda July and oddly her previous two films seem to have passed me by, even though they seem like the sort of thing I’d enjoy. She has a way of imbuing odd characters with distinctive voices that’s very appealing and definitely a gift for the right actors. As emotionally stunted couple Richard and Theresa, Richard Jenkins and Debra Winger are on fine form. Both of them are strong screen presences that don’t seem to get enough attention. The film largely belongs to Evan Rachel Wood’s equally emotionally stifled Old Dolio but it;s the interplay between her and Gina Rodriguez’s Mel that really sells the film. There’s also a nice line in weirdness that runs throughout - the office they live n which leaks with bubbles, the landlord with no emotional filter, the ducking walk they all do to avoid him, a stylistic moment that plays around with darkness - all of these things along with the performance combine to sweep you past the fact that actually there’s a fairly narratively conventional film lurking in the heart of it.

The Bad:- I honestly can't think of anything that I didn’t enjoy about this. I was swept along by it and didn't notice the running time - always a good sign, especially when trying to recreate the cinema experience in a distraction filled home environment.

The Verdict:- A thoroughly enjoyable mixture of weird and offbeat, silly and heartfelt, tragic and uplifting in which the four main leads effectively give us a four-hander character study. Two films in and suspect that this may be one of the highlights of the fest (early days though…).

The Venue/TechTalk:- Whatever teething troubles I had with the first film were absent for this one - streamed fine all the way through, no buffering. Looks like the BaldyFella Home PictureHouse is a go...

*Phrases are weird. This another one of those phrases where nobody seems quite sure where it originated. One possible theory is that, a wheelhouse is a part of a paddle steamer where, if anything were to fall into it, it would be struck with great force. It was used in baseball to describe the area where a batter could strike something with great force and then evolved into a saying meaning anything that fell within one’s area of expertise. Apparently. Then again, maybe not. Phrases, eh?

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Stray

And we’re off! It might well be from home but it’s still the film festival. The first of a double bill to kick off the opening night and a test of the new set up. Let’s dive in.

Stray
Dir. Elizabeth Lo / Dur. 72 mins
Strand: Journey

In A Nutshell:- We follow the day to day travels of Zeytin, a stray dog on the streets of Istanbul and discover by proxy a bit more about the humans who populate those streets too.

The Good:- One of my favourite documentaries of recent years is Kedi, a film about the lives of stray cats in Istanbul, so I was interested to see this as a counterpoint to that film. First up, it looks great. The cinematography is eye-catching and the pace at which it unfolds allows you to get a feel for the animals, the people and the city itself. Most of the action is shot at dog eye-level, giving the film a sense of what it would be like to wander the streets as a stray. The film eschews any narration, opting instead to let the wanderings of the dogs, mainly Zeytin and later Kartal, drive the story forward. There is a human element as Zeytin is unofficially adopted by a group of homeless Syrian teenagers who become the other driver for the story. The film does a good job of evoking an emotional response at points with something a simple as a sustained shot of a tired and sickly looking puppy’s face.

The Bad:- There is a certain staginess to some of the sequences involving people, most notably a brief scene showing a couple having an unconvincing argument. It may be being overly harsh but it feels at times that certain sequences have been either set up or nudged in order to drive some sort of narrative for the film. For me, the least convincing part involved the teenagers planning otu and committing a theft. I realise that all documentary filmmaking is ultimately artificial but something about some sequences didn't ring true.

The Verdict:- A solid start to the fest with a beautiful looking (if very occasionally unconvincing) look at the life of strays (dogs and humans) on the streets of Istanbul. We’re definitely up and running.

The Venue/TechTalk:- So last year, you got a bit of commentary from me on the venue and any intros or Q&As. Obviously, that’s a non-starter this year as I am sat at home so the venue is very much to my own specifications. I’m trying to treat it as if I’m at the cinema - watch through from start to finish with no pausing and putting my phone on the other side of the room to avoid the temptation to look at it. I did have some trouble getting this one to play initially and, when it did play, I had some buffering issues (to the extent that I had to completely refresh and skim through at one point to get back to where I’d been) but fortunately this was all working in time for film number two. More on which next time... 

WatchSeeLookView At The LFF 2020 - Not Your Usual Festival

It’s October and that can mean only one thing - this blog  becomes entirely subsumed for a month by me wittering on about films from the BFI London Film Festival. If that’s not your bag then best check back in about a month away from now when I’ll probably write something about, I don’t know, farts.*

It’s genuinely the highlight of my pop culture year but it’s going to be a little different this year. How so? Look, I’m going to resist using the phrase “new normal” but you all know it’s not too far away. Yes, it’s 2020, The Year Of The Pandemic, and the LFF has adjusted accordingly. For one thing, the number of films on offer is substantially smaller than in previous years - last year boasted around 360 films; this year, the total is around the 60 mark - largely in part due to production being shut down for most of the year. For another thing, the festival this year is moving predominantly online with only 12 films showing in cinemas and only a few of those being cinema only; the newest Pixar film Soul understandably being one of those (and another possible reason why they are fewer films - a number of distributors may be reluctant to premiere big releases online).

So this year, I will be taking part from the comfort of my own home. Will I miss the experience of seeing them on the big screen with an audience of like-minded film fans with the added bonus of Q&As with the creatives? Of course, that’s part of the whole experience. Am I ready to sit in an enclosed environment for hours and hours during the midst of a global pandemic? Nope.

I’m genuinely pleased that the BFI have moved to predominantly online for this - it keeps the festival going when so many other big events have fallen by the wayside this year. Plus it means that I can do the whole fest basically sat around in my pants eating crisps. Who wouldn't want to go to a festival like that?

So let the “Hopefully Weird Blip Stay-A- Home Film Festival For 2020 Only” begin….

*Not an actual example. Please don’t come back in a month expecting a blog about farts. You will probably be disappointed.

WatchSeeLookView In 2020 - Get Duked!

A fair chunk of this blog is often me wittering on about the films what I have done watched over the course of the year, usually on a lovely big screen in the darkened embrace of a cinema. For obvious reasons, I’ve not really ventured into a cinema since March (which was, as we all know, about fifteen years ago now) so the films of this year have been a bit thin on the ground. There have been  some films slowly trickling out there, however, so let’s cast an eye over some of the stuff that might well be worth your time.

Get Duked! (2020)
Dir. Ninian Doff / Dur. 87 mins
Where:- Amazon Prime

In A Nutshell:- Four hapless boys on their Duke Of Edinburgh Award out in the Highlands discover that the local gentry don’t exactly take kindly to “their sort”...

The Good
I came across this on Amazon Prime and didn't have much in the way of expectations for it which is why I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be really rather good. I found myself laughing at it quite a lot, despite the slightly off-putting title (it was apparently originally called Boyz In The Woodz but I’m guessing references to a nearly thirty year old film* were not deemed to be a huge marketing win). The four leads are engaging and the film wisely swerves away from making the “bad” lads obnoxious, instead aiming for a more sympathetic portrayal. There’s a good supporting cast on offer including James Cosmo as a mushroom-munching farmer, Kate Dickie as a Highlands cop out to prove herself and Eddie Izzard as the creepily evil Duke. There’s a nice sense of pace and style to the film with some quick cuts and unexpected flourishes that put me in mind a little bit of Edgar Wright. It’s also a film that doesn’t outstay its welcome - sub-ninety minutes is a good duration for a first time director’s horror comedy.

The Bad
It’s a little rough and ready in places and has one moment of “why doesn’t that big group of people just help them out” but these are minor quibbles really.

The Verdict
A surprisingly fun and very British horror comedy romp, managing to throw in some deliberately heavy-handed satire and just about getting with it. Worth it for the absolutely ludicrous ending alone.



*Yup, Boyz n The Hood was made in 1991. No, you’re getting old.