BFF LFF 2020: Cicada (2020)
★★★☆☆
In Cicada by Matt Fifer and Kieran Mulcare, a twenty-something in New York finds love but his life is clouded by the memories of childhood abuse and the pain of not knowing how to deal with it.
Monsoon (2019)
★★★☆☆
Writer/director Hong Khaou draws upon his own experiences in Monsoonwith this moving story of a British-Vietnamese man returning to Saigon.
The Uncertain Kingdom (2019) – ON DEMAND
★★★★☆
The Uncertain Kingdom collection of short films is a powerfully diverse commentary on 21st century Britain.
End of the Century (2019)
★★★★☆
Writer/director Lucio Castro’s intimate drama End of the Century sees two men meet and form a passionate connection before realising that they had met similarly twenty years earlier.
Ordinary Love (2019)
★★★★☆
Owen McCafferty’s sensitive and beautifully observed drama Ordinary Love, starring Lesley Manville and Liam Neeson, is subtly directed by Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn (Good Vibrations).
John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection (2018)
★★★☆☆
John McEnroe’s fiery artistry on court is put under the microscope in Julien Faraut’s unique documentary John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection, which examines tennis as theatrical performance.
Thunder Road (2018)
★★★ώ☆
Thunder Road – Jim Cummings writes, directs and stars as Jim, a small-town cop negotiating multiple crises in this bittersweet comedy drama.
Eighth Grade (2018)
★★★★★
The pressures and anxieties of a 14-year-old girl navigating eighth grade in the social media age are put under the microscope in writer/director Bo Burnham’s achingly observant little gem Eighth Grade.
Wild Rose (2018)
★★★★☆
Jessie Buckley is superb as an aspiring country singer determined to break from her past and get to Nashville in director Tom Harper’s Glasgow-set Wild Rose.
Mid90s (2018)
★★★☆☆
Jonah Hill’s Mid90s is an affectionate, coming-of-age time capsule of skateboards, street life, hip-hop, pop culture moments and stoners.
Maborosi (1995)
★★★★☆
Following Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner and Oscar-nominated Shoplifters, UK audiences now get a chance to see the director’s earlier work Maborosi for the first time.
Red Joan (2018)
★★★☆☆
The intriguing Red Joan, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Judi Dench and Sophie Cookson, is inspired by a real-life, very British wartime spy story exposed 50 years on.
Ben is Back (2018)
★★★☆☆
Julia Roberts plays a mother fighting to hold onto her relationship with her son in the face of his drug problems in writer/director Peter Hedges’ drama Ben is Back.
The Kindergarten Teacher (2018)
★★★★☆
The pursuit of artistic desire goes too far in writer/director Sara Colangelo’s slow burning drama The Kindergarten Teacher based on the 2014 Israeli film and showcasing a tremendous performance from Maggie Gyllenhaal.