Abel (2010)
★★☆☆☆
With its little boy lost fresh from the mental ward, Diego Luna’s fictional debut Abel is a family story, both comic and tragic. Albeit a bit bipolar.
London Film Festival
127 Hours (2010)
★★★★☆
Audiences are bound to be divided over Danny Boyle’s flashy visuals, but James Franco goes all out on a limb to ground the supersonic 127 Hours with a bit of gravitas.
Somewhere (2010)
★★★☆☆
With Stephen Dorff as Sunset Boulevard’s latest fading star and a put-upon debutante daughter, Somewhere is Sofia Coppola’s most autobiographical film to date.
Des Hommes Et Des Dieux / Of Gods And Men (2010)
★★★★☆
A sublime look into the hearts and minds of tormented monks, Xavier Beauvois’ Of Gods And Men reveals the battle between humanity and divinity in all of us.
Rare Exports – A Christmas Tale (2010)
★★★☆☆
Turning Santa into the ultimate horror movie villain, Jalmari Helander’s Rare Exports dishes the dirt on the man coming down your chimney with Christmas relish.
Leap Year / Año Bisiesto (2010)
★★★★☆
Minimalism on a microbudget, Michael Rowe’s Camera d’Or winning Mexican debut Leap Year is a masochist’s delight. With an Australian fascination for light.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)
★★★☆☆
A hypnotic journey into reincarnation, monkey gods and talking catfish, Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee is a puzzling but award-winning controversy.
Robinson In Ruins (2010)
★★★★☆
A symbiosis of fixed landscapes and illuminating narration, Patrick Keiller’s Robinson In Ruins is a bracing journey through the Oxfordshire countryside.
Another Year (2010)
★★★☆☆
A four seasons symphony of age-worn contentment and unhappy boozers, Mike Leigh’s Another Year conquers and divides into haves and have-nots.
The Kids Are All Right (2010)
★★★★☆
With pitch-perfect performances by Julianne Moore and Annette Bening, Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right is by no means playing it straight.
Film Festival: The 54th BFI London Film Festival 2010
Tomorrow the London Film Festival finally opens its doors. And there are still plenty of tickets left, so here’s a little sneak preview to…
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L’Illusionniste / The Illusionist (2010)
★★★☆☆
Based on a script by Jacques Tati, Sylvain Chomet’s The Illusionist is a lyrical love story for sugar daddies and sweet dreamers. As well as residents of Dunedin.
When You’re Strange (2009)
★★★☆☆
A medley of grainy super-8 footage, Tom DiCillo’s When You’re Strange strips The Doors down to no-holds-barred exuberance. Or is it just wallowing in the mire?
The Girl On The Train / La Fille du RER (2009)
★★★☆☆
André Techiné’s The Girl On The Train is not so much an exploration of modern antisemitism as a cumulation of our collective fears. Just mind the moral gap.