As one would expect, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into in this year’s NZ International Film Festival programme. After we’ve had the chance to give the programme due consideration, we’ll be making some recommendations and helping you navigate the cinematic marvels on offer. For starters, though, here are ten films we’ve been looking forward to seeing for a while and are delighted to come across in the Festival lineup.
The Babadook
So what’s it all about then?Aussie horror starring Essie Davis (Matrix Revolutions) as a widowed mother trying to take care of her out of control six-year-old son, who becomes increasingly agitated with the belief that a pop-up book monster called The Babadook will kill them both.
Variety says: “Manages to deliver real, seat-grabbing jolts while also touching on more serious themes of loss, grief and other demons that can not be so easily vanquished.”
Click here for more info on ‘The Babadook’
Borgman
So what’s it all about then?The arrival of a strange, bearded homeless man named Borgman begins a series of unsettling events in the upper-class, tree-lined residence of a wealthy couple in this Dutch thriller. Nominated for the Palme d’Or at Cannes 2013.
The Philadelphia Inquirer says: “Filled with surreal touches and shocking scenes of black humour, Borgman steams ahead with the power and inevitability of a nightmare”
Click here for more info on ‘Borgman’
Boyhood
So what’s it all about then?Longitudinal coming-of-age drama from filmmaker Richard Linklater, following the life of a boy from age five to 18. The movie was made over a period of 12 years, filmed in annual periods, watching the boy – as well as co-stars Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke – age and change. Hawke described the unique production as “timelapse photography of a human being”.
Film.com says: “Linklater’s third masterpiece in the past decade should only affect anyone who’s ever been someone else’s sibling, child, parent, lover or friend.”
Click here for more info on ‘Boyhood’
It Follows
So what’s it all about then?American indie horror sees 19-year-old woman Jay (Maika Monroe) develop a highly unusual affliction after a sexual encounter with Hugh (Jake Weary). Jay’s date explains that she is now being pursued by a being that can take human shape, though remains invisible to the uninfected. Following her – one relentless step at a time – it won’t stop until it catches Jay or she passes the curse on to someone else.
Film4 says: “I recommend making a point of seeing it when it comes out – it is intelligently in tune with everything a film like this should be: funny in places, skin-crawling in others, and a real pleasure to watch.”
Click here for more info on ‘It Follows’
Locke
So what’s it all about then?The Oscar-nominated writer of Dirty Pretty Things and Eastern Promises directs this minimalist thriller that takes place in a car, on a long evening drive, starring Tom Hardy as a hard-working professional on the cusp of a major career boost. But on this night trip from Birmingham to London, an attempt to confront his past life may cost him dearly.
Variety says: “An exceptional one-man show for Tom Hardy, this ingeniously executed study in cinematic minimalism has depth, beauty and poise.”
Click here for more info on ‘Locke’
The Rover
So what’s it all about then?Set in the Australian desert in a dangerous near future, director David Michôd’s follow-up to Animal Kingdom starring Guy Pearce. Eric (Pearce), the victim of a gang of robbers who’ve stolen all his possessions, sets off to track them down with the help of Reynolds (Robert Pattinson), an injured member of the gang who they’ve left behind. Co-written by Animal Kingdom actor Joel Edgerton.
Rolling Stone says: “In revealing two men trying to get in touch with the shreds of their shared humanity, [director] Michôd offers a startling vision. You’ll be hooked.”
Click here for more info on ‘The Rover’
Snowpiercer
So what’s it all about then? Futuristic sci-fi actioner from Joon-Ho Bong (The Host), starring Chris Evans, Jamie Bell, Tilda Swinton, Octavia Spencer and Ed Harris. In a future where a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on Earth, a class system evolves among the few survivors aboard the Snowpiercer – a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine.
Hollywood Reporter says: “an intellectually and artistically superior vehicle to many of the end-of-days futuristic action thrillers out there”.
Click here for more info on ‘Snowpiercer’
Starred Up
So what’s it all about then? The BAFTA-winning director of Young Adam delivers this UK prison drama about an explosively violent teen who happens upon his father when transferred to an adult penitentiary. Stars Jack O’Connell (TV’s Skins), Rupert Friend (Pride & Prejudice) and Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom).
Little White Lies says: “This bruising and brutal jailhouse carve-up rides on the back of an astonishing central turn by Jack O’Connell.”
Click here for more info on ‘Starred Up’
Two Days, One Night
So what’s it all about then? French working-class drama nominated for the Palme d’Or at Cannes 2014, starring Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard as a young woman who will lose her job unless she convinces her colleagues to give up their bonuses.
The Daily Telegraph says: “The Dardennes bring enough moral shading to their story to prevent it becoming a tract, and tie it up with an ethical conundrum so dripping with juice, the usherettes should have been handing out bibs.”
Click here for more info on ‘Two Days, One Night’
Under the Skin
So what’s it all about then? Scarlett Johansson (The Avengers) stars as a mysterious alien seductress, targeting lone men on remote highways, in this stark sci-fi thriller from director Jonathan Glazer (Birth, Sexy Beast). Based on Michel Faber’s acclaimed 2000 novel, nominated for a Gold Lion at the 2013 Venice Film Festival.
Village Voice says: “There are dozens of mysteries in Under the Skin that don’t cohere in any logical way but work like gangbusters on the imaginative subconscious.”
Click here for more info on ‘Under the Skin’
