60th BFI London Film Festival October 5th-16th, 2016 Various London Venues by Joanna Orland The 60th BFI London Film Festival played like a ‘Best Of’ the 2016 international film festivals.  Opening with Amma Asante’s A United Kingdom and closing with Ben Wheatley’s Free Fire, the festival showcased some of the year’s most buzzed about films.  […]

Free Fire Directed by Ben Wheatley Starring Sharlto Copley, Armie Hammer, Brie Larson, Cillian Murphy, Jack Reynor, Babou Ceesay, Noah Taylor, Enzo Cilenti, Sam Riley and Michael Smiley Watch on iTunes by Joanna Orland There’s not much to Ben Wheatley’s 90 minute shootout film Free Fire – what you see is what you get.  And […]

Director Justin Kelly discusses his films I Am Michael and King Cobra by Joanna Orland Screenwriter and director Justin Kelly first garnered industry attention when his debut feature I Am Michael premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2015.  His second film King Cobra continues the tradition set by I Am Michael, by being based on […]

Manchester by the Sea Directed by Kenneth Lonergan Starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler and Lucas Hedges Watch now on iTunes by Richard Hamer ‘Real life doesn’t know what genre it’s in’ – that’s what I have jotted down at the end of our screening of Kenneth Lonergan’s homecoming drama. It’s not often you […]

The Young Offenders Directed by Peter Foott Starring Alex Murphy, Chris Walley and Hilary Rose by Amanda Farley Peter Foott’s debut feature is a welcome addition to the Irish film landscape. Set in Cork in 2007, The Young Offenders was shot on an impressively small budget and yet more than stands its ground against bigger […]

The Worthy Directed by Ali F. Mostafa Starring Mahmoud Atrash, Samer Almasri and Maisa Abd Elhadi by Amanda Farley Set in a dystopian future, Ali F. Mostafa’s latest feature The Worthy sees an interesting departure from his earlier work. This post-apocalyptic thriller focuses on a mismatched group of survivors led by Shauib (Samer Al Masry). […]

Christine Directed by Antonio Campos Starring Rebecca Hall, Michael C Hall and Tracy Letts by Joanna Orland Christine is a character study of the real life news anchor Christine Chubbuck, famed for committing suicide during a live broadcast in the 1970’s.  Rebecca Hall gives a brilliant performance in this tragic and bleak story, showing much […]

Bleed For This Directed by Ben Younger Starring Miles Teller, Aaron Eckhart and Ciarán Hinds Watch on iTunes by Amanda Farley Bleed for This is writer-director Ben Younger’s biopic of ‘The Pazmanian Devil’ boxing legend Vinny Pazienza (Miles Teller), a Rhode Island fighter whose refusal to be beaten by anything has made him a living […]

Goldstone Directed by Ivan Sen Starring Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell and Jacki Weaver by Amanda Farley In this sequel to Ivan Sen’s Mystery Road, Indigenous detective Jay Swan (Aaron Pedersen) returns, this time, sent to the frontier town of Goldstone on a missing person’s inquiry. His arrival upsets the easy life of local sheriff Josh […]

Arrival Directed by Denis Villeneuve Starring Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker and Michael Stuhlbarg Watch on iTunes by Joanna Orland At its core, Arrival is an evocative existentialist drama.  In the guise of an alien invasion Sci Fi movie, the film is an emotional exploration of the meaning of time, memory and identity.  Many complex […]