Combining tragedy, comedy and romance into a crime thriller musical, The Score is an admirably ambitious feature debut from Malachi Smyth. The plot follows crooks Troy (Will Poulter) and Mike (Johnny Flynn) as they stop off at a roadside café to carry out a deal. As they await their criminal counterparts, they meet waitress Gloria (Naomi Ackie), and an unexpected relationship develops.
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Off the back of her leading role in haunting horror The Night House a couple of years ago, Rebecca Hall finds herself at the centre of another tense mystery in Resurrection, written and directed by Andrew Semans. From the outside looking in, Margaret (Hall) very much has her life together, excelling in a high-powered job at a pharmaceutical company and raising her teenage daughter Abbie (Grace Kaufman) to share the same strong values and success. However, when she spots David (Tim Roth) at a conference, she begins to spiral out of control as her dark past catches up with her.
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Writer and director Charlotte Wells gets nostalgic for 90s package holidays in her first feature Aftersun. The drama looks back at a father-daughter trip to a Turkish family resort, as Calum (Paul Mescal) takes his 11-year-old, Sophie (Frankie Corio) for a week away. We see their tale through the shaky lens of a camcorder, or through the sun-soaked memories of an older and wiser Sophie, remembering the happy-go-lucky version of her dad as he hid the severity of his problems behind wit and a charming smile.
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Writer and director Nathalie Biancheri released her debut Nocturnal in 2019, which caught my attention and marked her as one of the directors I’d love to talk to about their craft. Her second effort Wolf explores the dark and unusual subject of species dysphoria, as the protagonist, played by George Mackay, believes he is a wolf stuck inside a boy’s body. I was fortunate enough to chat to the filmmaker about this piece…
As Wolf is your second feature film, was there anything in particular that you’d brought forward into it from the learning experience that came with directing your debut?
Wolf was such a crazy, demanding, and very insane film from a performance and directing actors’ point of view, so I think it was really reassuring was to have made a first film before going into it. I think what was what was amazing was to have had that first feature even though it was very small. Knowing that it was possible somehow, and not having this unknown of making a feature film and the absolute fear that comes with that was great.
Continue reading “Wolf Interview: Nathalie Biancheri – ‘People will love it or hate it, but should take George Mackay seriously’.”
It’s been a long three years since we’ve had a proper film festival in the capital. After an online 2020 iteration and a clever hybrid version last year, EIFF is back in all its glory its 75th edition in 2022, albeit a little later in the calendar. Split into various strands including Heartbreakers, Night Moves, The Chamber, and Postcards from the Edge, the programme offers an eclectic mix of cinema that should have something to satisfy any film-goer. I’ve perused the brochure to pick out a selection that I have my eye on…
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After a brief foray into the MCU, writer and director Scott Derrickson returns to his horror roots for child-killer thriller The Black Phone. Set in Denver, Colorado in the late 1970s, the plot follows young teen Finney (Mason Thames) who dodges school bullies by day only to go back to a tricky home life with little sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) and their abusive, alcoholic father. When a string of kids go missing in the neighbourhood, rumour spreads of a crazed kidnapper known as ‘The Grabber’ (Ethan Hawke) and Finney soon finds himself bundled into the back of his van.
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Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is the third fictional feature and latest in a run of Sundance hits for Australian director Sophie Hyde. The dramedy plot centres around retired widow Nancy Stokes (Emma Thompson) who, after years of unsatisfying sex with her late husband, hires escort Leo (Daryl McCormack) for an adventurous night of passion at a local hotel. Their initial encounter is expectedly awkward, but the pair’s relationship soon develops into something far more intimate.
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Winning trophies and causing controversy wherever he goes, Swedish superstar striker Zlatan Ibrahimović certainly knows how to make an impact. His illustrious story has now been given the cinematic treatment by director Jens Sjögren, with the leading role shared between actors Dominic Andersson Bajraktati and Granit Rushiti as he grows older. Based on the player’s autobiography, the biopic charts the early chapters in his life, from his challenging childhood in Malmö through to his turbulent spell at Ajax.
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Over thirty years have flown by since Tony Scott’s 80s hit Top Gun took to the skies, and we’ve seen Tom Cruise transition from an exciting rising talent into the ultimate movie star he is today. The long-awaited sequel sees him reprise the leading role of Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, now serving as an instructor in the US Navy.
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Emmanuel Carrère is predominantly known as a non-fiction author but has always dabbled in cinema and television, directing his debut The Moustache in 2005 which was based upon his own novel. For his sophomore effort, he adapts autobiographical essay Le Quai de Ouistreham by journalist Florence Aubenas as drama Between Two Worlds.
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Cinema Perspective 