The Favourite and Tel Aviv On Fire
3 Days In Quiberon (3 Tage in Quiberon)
(Country: Germany, Austria, France; Year: 2018; Director: Emily Atef; Writer: Emily Atef; Stars: Marie Bäumer, Birgit Minichmayr, Charly Hübner, Robert Gwisdek, Denis Lavant)
Dramatisations of Romy Scheider's last two interviews with journalists.
All Is Well (Alles Ist Gut, All Good)
(Country: Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Eva Trobisch; Writer: Eva Trobisch; Stars: Aenne Schwarz, Andreas Döhler, Hans Löw, Tilo Nest, Lina Wendel, Lisa Hagmeister, Dagny Dewath, Thomas Gräßle, Annika Blendl, Doris Buchrucker, Hildegard Faust-Albrecht, Vera Flück, Marc-Philipp Kochendörfer, Valentina Kühnel, Hermann Linnenbrink)
A woman keeps silent after a rape.
Angel (Une Ange)
(Country: Belgium, Netherlands, Senegal; Year: 2018; Director: Koen Mortier; Writer: Koen Mortier, Dimitri Verhulst; Stars: Vincent Rottiers, Fatou N'Diaye, Paul Bartel, Katrien Goossens, Ronnie Kreeft, Aïcha Cissé, Ba Mentor, Lieven Noterman Nancy Debuy, Makhtar Diop, Kilifeu, Mouhamadou Diarra, Ndiaga Mbow, Rokhaya Niang, Eric Berlito, Dieynanba Janie Ndione)
Fae is a Senegalese sex worker. Thierry is a world-renowned Belgian racing cyclist. Their paths cross.
Anna's War (Voyna Anny)
(Country: Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Aleksey Fedorchenko; Writer: Aleksey Fedorchenko, Nataliya Meshchaninova; Stars: Marta Kozlova, Ilya Belov, Sergey Fedorov, Konstantin Itunin, Yekaterina Sokolova, Aleksandr Vakhov, Lyubov Vorozhtsova, Marta Kozlova, Ilya Belov, Sergey Fedorov, Konstantin Itunin, Yekaterina Sokolova, Aleksandr Vakhov, Lyubov Vorozhtsova)
A little girl survives a Nazi mass execution and hides in the disused chimney and struggles to survive.
An Unexpected Love
(Country: Argentina; Year: 2018; Director: Juan Vera; Writer: Daniel Cúparo, Juan Vera; Stars: Ricardo Darín, Mercedes Morán, Claudia Fontán, Luis Rubio, Andrea Pietra, Jean Pierre Noher, Claudia Lapacó, Chico Novarro, Gabriel Corrado, Andrea Politti, Norman Briski, Juan Minujín, Andres Gil, Ricardo Darín, Mercedes Morán)
Yomeddine and Friend
And Breathe Normally
(Country: Iceland, Sweden, Belgium; Year: 2018; Director: Ísold Uggadóttir; Stars: Kristín Thóra Haraldsdóttir, Babetida Sadjo, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson)
At the edge of Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, two women’s lives will intersect – for a brief moment – while trapped in circumstances unforeseen. Between a struggling Icelandic mother and an asylum seeker from Guinea-Bissau, a delicate bond will form as both strategise to get their lives back on track.
Butterflies (Kelebekler)
(Country: Turkey; Year: 2018; Director: Tolga Karaçelik; Writer: Tolga Karaçelik; Stars: Ezgi Mola, Serkan Keskin, Bartu Küçükçaglayan, Ercan Kesal, Tolga Tekin, Hakan Karsak, Tugce Altug)
Three estranged siblings travel back to their home village after a call from their father.
The Candidate (El Reino, The Realm)
(Country: Spain; Year: 2018; Director: Rodrigo Sorogoyen; Writer: Isabel Peña, Rodrigo Sorogoyen; Stars: Antonio de la Torre, Mónica López, Josep Maria Pou, Nacho Fresneda, Ana Wagener, Bárbara Lennie, Luis Zahera, Francisco Reyes, María de Nati, Paco Revilla, Sonia Almarcha, David Lorente, Óscar de la Fuente, Mona Martínez, Pepe Ocio)
Manuel, an influential deputy secretary of an regional government who has everything going his way, finds himself fighting for survival when news of his involvement in a corruption ring leaks out.
Capernaum (Capharnaüm)
(Country: Lebanon, US; Year: 2018; Director: Nadine Labaki; Writer: Nadine Labaki, Jihad Hojeily, Michelle Keserwany, Georges Khabbaz, Khaled Mouzanar; Stars: Zain Al Rafeea, Yordanos Shiferaw, Boluwatife Treasure Bankole, Kawsar Al Haddad, Fadi Yousef, Haita 'Cedra' Izzam, Alaa Chouchnieh, Nadine Labaki, Elias Khoury, Nour El Husseini, Joseph Jimbazian, Samira Chalhoub, Farah Hasno, Joe Maalouf, Alexandre Youakim)
A child rebels against the life imposed upon him.
Core Of The World (Serdtse Mira)
(Country: Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Natalia Meschaninova; Writer: Natalia Meschaninova; Stars: Stepan Devonin, Dmitriy Podnozov, Jana Sekste)
A vet finds his life's fragile balance crumbling after animal rights activists arrive at his place of work.
Styx and The Man Who Surprised Everyone
Crystal Swan
(Country: Belarus, US, Germany, Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Darya Zhuk; Stars: Alina Nasibullina, Ivan Mulin, Anastasia Garvey, Ilya Kapanets, Yury Borisov, Lyudmila Razumova, Svetlana Anikey, Natalya Onishenko, Vyacheslav Shakalido, Alina Nasibullina, Ivan Mulin, Anastasia Garvey, Ilya Kapanets, Yury Borisov, Lyudmila Razumova)
Young Evelina has a law degree, but her dream is to travel to the USA and earn a
living as a professional DJ. But it’s 1997 and the girl is living in post-Soviet Minsk…
Dead Women Walking
(Country: US; Year: 2018; Director: Hagar Ben-Asher; Writer: Hagar Ben-Asher; Stars: Crystal Bush, Colleen Camp, Lynn Collins, Dale Dickey, Logan Johnson, Dot-Marie Jones, Joy Nash, Jeryl Prescott, Maya Lynne Robinson, Bess Rous, Ashton Sanders, Crystal Bush, Colleen Camp, Lynn Collins, Dale Dickey)
Nine vignettes depict the stages leading to execution for women on death row.
Erik & Erika (Erik And Erika)
(Country: Austria; Year: 2018; Director: Reinhold Bilgeri; Writer: Dirk Kämper; Stars: Ulrike Beimpold, Christoph Bittenauer, Nives Bogad, Sarah Born, Hans-Maria Darnov, Lili Epply, Markus Freistätter, Victoria Hauer, Gerhard Liebmann, Birgit Melcher, Cornelius Obonya, Anna Posch, August Schmölzer, Harald Schrott, Marianne Sägebrecht)
The true story of Erik Schinegger, women’s world champion skier. Declared female at birth and raised as a girl, until a newly-introduced gene test proves that he is genetically male.
Everybody Knows (Todos Lo Saben)
(Country: Spain, France, Italy; Year: 2018; Director: Asghar Farhadi; Writer: Asghar Farhadi; Stars: Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Bárbara Lennie, Ricardo Darín, Jaime Lorente, Carla Campra, Inma Cuesta, Eduard Fernández, Elvira Mínguez, Sara Sálamo, Roger Casamajor, Ramón Barea, Sergio Castellanos, Marianella Rojas, Penélope Cruz)
Secrets resurface after a woman returns to her family's village for a wedding.
The Extraordinary Journey Of Celeste Garcia (El viaje extraordinario de Celeste García)
(Country: Cuba, Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Arturo Infante; Writer: Arturo Infante; Stars: María Isabel Díaz, Omar Franco, Néstor Jiménez, Yerlín Pérez, Tamara Castellanos, Veronica Diaz, Roberto Espinosa, Reinier Díaz, Andrea Doimeadiós, Beatriz Viña, María Isabel Díaz, Omar Franco, Néstor Jiménez, Yerlín Pérez, Tamara Castellanos)
An ex-schoolteacher looking for a life change, signs up to leave Earth with a group of aliens.
Anna's War and Yuli
The Favourite
(Country: Ireland, United Kingdom, United States; Year: 2018; Director: Yorgos Lanthimos; Writer: Deborah Davis, Tony McNamara; Stars: Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, Nicholas Hoult, Olivia Colman, Joe Alwyn, Mark Gatiss, Timothy Innes, John Locke, Isaura Barbé-Brown, Jenny Rainsford, James Smith, Wilson Radjou-Pujalte, Basil Eidenbenz, James Melville, Jack Veal)
Two of Queen Anne's acolytes jockey for position.
Full Review
See:
Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone, Nicholas Hoult, Olivia Colman, Joe Alwyn, and Tony McNamara in conversation on The Favourite
,
Venice 2018: First Man, Peterloo, The Favourite, Roma, The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs and Suspiria
Friend (Rafiki)
(Country: Kenya, South Africa; Year: 2018; Director: Wanuri Kahiu; Writer: Jenna Cato Bass, Wanuri Kahiu; Stars: Patricia Amira, Muthoni Gathecha, Jimmy Gathu, Nice Githinji, Charlie Karumi, Patricia Kihoro)
When they fall in love, two girls from rival families must choose between being together and being safe.
The Gentle Indifference Of The World
(Country: Kazakhstan, France; Year: 2018; Director: Adilkhan Yerzhanov; Writer: Roelof Jan Minneboo, Adilkhan Yerzhanov)
After her father’s untimely death, Saltanat is forced to trade her idyllic countryside life for the cruel city... and she is followed by her loyal but penniless admirer.
The Good Girls (Las Ninas Bien)
(Country: Mexico; Year: 2018; Director: Alejandra Márquez Abella; Writer: Alejandra Márquez Abella; Stars: Ilse Salas, Flavio Medina, Cassandra Ciangherotti, Paulina Gaitan, Johanna Murillo, Jimena Guerra, Ana José Aldrete, Pablo Chemor, Claudia Lobo, Diego Jáuregui, Daniel Haddad, Rebecca de Alba, Nicolas Andreu, Alfonso Borbolla, Alejandro Caballero)
Mexico City 1982. Affluent and arrogant, queen bee Sofia rules over the city’s social elite–until the family business falls victim to the national economic crisis... but how far will she go to retain her status.
Green Book
(Country: US; Year: 2018; Director: Peter Farrelly; Writer: Nick Vallelonga, Brian Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly; Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Don Stark, PJ Byrne, Craig DiFrancia, Sebastian Maniscalco, Brian Stepanek, Nick Vallelonga, Daniel Greene, Iqbal Theba, Jenna Laurenzo, Joe Cortese, Tracy Brotherton, Martin Bats Bradford, Tom Virtue, Linda Cardellini)
An Italian-American is hired as a driver for a world-class black pianist on a concert tour of the Deep South.
Butterflies and Yellow Submarine
Gundermann
(Country: Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Andreas Dresen; Writer: Laila Stieler; Stars: Bjarne Mädel, Alexander Scheer, Milan Peschel, Peter Schneider, Axel Prahl, Thorsten Merten, Alexander Schubert, Anna Unterberger, Peter Sodann, Christian Skibinski, Leni Wesselman, Alexander Hörbe, Hilmar Eichhorn, Peter Rappenglück, Benjamin Kramme)
Story of a construction worker turned singer-songwriter in the German Democratic Republic
The Heiresses (Las Herederas)
(Country: Paraguay, Uruguay, Germany, Brazil, Norway; Year: 2018; Director: Marcelo Martinessi; Writer: Marcelo Martinessi; Stars: Ana Brun, Margarita Irún, Ana Ivanova, Nilda Gonzalez, María Martins)
When Chiquita is sent to prison for debt, her introverted girlfriend Chela is left to her own devices. Chela offers rich women a taxi service in her old car. As she explores the outside world she also starts to focus on her own desires.
In The Aisles (In Den Gangen)
(Country: Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Thomas Stuber; Writer: Clemens Meyer, Thomas Stuber; Stars: Franz Rogowski, Sandra Hüller, Peter Kurth, Andreas Leupold, Michael Specht)
Christian is new to the warehouse. He falls in love with Marion, but she’s married. Magical realism in the east German provinces.
"I Do Not Care If We Go Down In History As Barbarians" ("Îmi este indiferent dacă în istorie vom intra ca barbari")
(Country: Czech Republic, France, Bulgaria, Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Radu Jude)
A young artist is planning to reconstruct a historical event from 1941, during which the
Romanian Army carried out ethnic cleansing on the Eastern Front.
Lysis
(Country: Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Rick Ostermann; Writer: Rick Ostermann; Stars: Oliver Masucci, Louis Hofmann)
A father takes his estranged son on a rafting trip into the wilderness that suddenly turns into a struggle for survival.
Winter Flies and The Candidate
The Man Who Surprised Everyone (Tchelovek Kotorij Udivil Vseh)
(Country: Russia, Estonia, France; Year: 2018; Director: Natasha Merkulova, Aleksey Chupov; Writer: Natasha Merkulova, Aleksey Chupov; Stars: Evgeniy Tsiganov, Natalya Kudryashowa)
When a man discovers he has cancer, he tries to trick death. As a disguise, he chooses to take the identity of a woman.
Mothers' Instinct (Duelles)
(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2018; Director: Olivier Masset-Depasse; Stars: Jules Lefebvres, Luan Adam, Veerle Baetens, Anne Coesens, Mehdi Nebbou, Arieh Worthalter, Jules Lefebvres, Luan Adam, Veerle Baetens, Anne Coesens, Mehdi Nebbou, Arieh Worthalter)
A neighbourhood friendship descends into paranoia after a tragic accident.
The Perfect Ones (Bez menya)
(Country: Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Kirill Pletnyov; Writer: Darya Gratsevich; Stars: Lyubov Aksyonova, Yuriy Bigulov, Irina Chipizhenko, Evgeniya Dmitrieva, Roman Evdokimov, Ekaterina Gudina, Darya Gushchina, Anna Kamenkova, Vladislav Kaptur, Seseg Khapsasova, Polina Maksimova, Rinal Mukhametov, Aleksandr Oblasov, Aleksandr Pechenin, Kirill Pletnyov)
When two women who loved the same man get texts from him after his death, they find themselves on a road trip to unravel a mystery.
The Rib
(Country: China; Year: 2018; Director: Wei Zhang; Writer: Ruirui Chen, Hao Meng, He Zhang, Marlo Bernier, Amory Hui, Ye Qin, Dan Li, Xuejun Wu; Stars: Jingyi Huang, Weijie Yuan, Deng Gao, Hao Meng)
Trans woman Huang Yi braves coming out to her patronising male roommate and her devoutly Catholic father, whose signature she needs for male-to-female surgery.
European premiere
Richard Says Goodbye
(Country: US; Year: 2018; Director: Wayne Roberts; Writer: Wayne Roberts; Stars: Johnny Depp, Zoey Deutch, Ron Livingston, Rosemarie DeWitt, Danny Huston, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Paloma Kwiatkowski, Farrah Aviva, Odessa Young, Kaitlyn Bernard, Matreya Scarrwener, Keith MacKechnie, Katherine Evans, Linda Emond, Debbie Podowski)
When a college professor discovers he is dying, he decides to completely change his life.
Green Book and Widows
Spitak
(Country: Armenia, Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Aleksandr Kott; Writer: Marina Sochinskaya; Stars: Mkhitar Avetisyan, Martun Ghevondyan, Lernik Harutyunyan, Joséphine Japy, Aleksandr Kuznetsov, Arthur Manukyan, Olivier Pagès, Alexandra Politic, Konstantin Poyarkin, Hermine Stepanyan, Oleg Vasilkov)
A man returns to his Armenian hometown after a devastating earthquake to search for his family.
Styx
(Country: Germany, Austria; Year: 2018; Director: Wolfgang Fischer; Writer: Wolfgang Fischer, Ika Künzel; Stars: Susanne Wolff, Gedion Oduor Wekesa, Alexander Beyer, Inga Birkenfeld, Anika Menger, Susanne Wolff, Gedion Oduor Wekesa, Alexander Beyer, Inga Birkenfeld, Anika Menger)
A storm in the middle of the ocean, a boat full of refugees that is about to sink and a woman all by herself...
Sunset (Napszállta)
(Country: Hungary, France; Year: 2018; Director: László Nemes; Writer: László Nemes, Clara Royer, Matthieu Taponier; Stars: Vlad Ivanov, Susanne Wuest, Juli Jakab, Judit Bárdos, Levente Molnár, Evelin Dobos, Urs Rechn, Mónika Balsai, Björn Freiberg, Uwe Lauer, János Kulka, Sándor Zsótér, Mihály Kormos, Dusán Vitanovics, Laurent Winkler)
A young wannabe milliner in Budapest meets a man connected to her past and begins to uncover family secrets.
Full Review
See:
László Nemes in conversation on fairy tales, Murnau's Sunrise, archaic imagery, and resonances beyond Sunset (Napszállta)
,
László Nemes in conversation on TS Eliot, caves of darkness, the innocent and ominous in Sunset (Napszállta)
,
Venice 2018: The Sisters Brothers, Sunset, Non-Fiction, The Mountain, Dragged Across Concrete, Charlie Say and Vox Lux
Tel Aviv On Fire
(Country: Luxembourg, Belgium, Israel, France; Year: 2018; Director: Sameh Zoabi; Writer: Dan Kleinman, Sameh Zoabi; Stars: Kais Nashif, Lubna Azabal, Yaniv Biton, Maisa Abd Elhadi, Nadim Sawalha, Salim Dau, Yousef 'Joe' Sweid, Amer Hlehel, Laëtitia Eïdo, Ashraf Farah, Ula Tabari, Shifi Aloni, Yazan Doubal, Negweny El Assal, Kais Nashif)
Salam, an inexperienced young Palestinian man, becomes a writer on a popular soap opera after a chance meeting with an Israeli soldier, but trouble brews when soldier and the show's backers disagree about how the it should end.
The Third Wife
(Country: Vietnam; Year: 2018; Director: Ash Mayfair; Writer: Ash Mayfair; Stars: Trần Nữ Yên Khê, Mai Thu Hường, Nguyễn Phương Trà My, Nguyễn Như Quỳnh)
The story of a 14-year-old who becomes the third wife of a much older man in 19th Century Vietnam.
All Is Well and The Third Wife
Van Goghs (Van Gogi)
(Country: Latvia, Russia; Year: 2018; Director: Sergey Livnev; Writer: Sergey Livnev; Stars: Aleksey Serebryakov, Daniel Olbrychski, Elena Koreneva, Polina Agureeva, Natalya Negoda, Aleksandr Sirin, Svetlana Nemolyaeva, Olga Ostroumova, Evgeniy Tkachuk, Saveliy Kudryashov, Yola Sanko, Avangard Leontev, Sergey Dreyden, Anna Kamenkova, Dudu Bauchner)
A lonely but talented artist finds his relationship problems with his father flaring up when he goes to visit. But they are both forced to come to terms with their past.
Wackersdorf
(Country: Germany; Year: 2018; Director: Oliver Haffner; Writer: Oliver Haffner, Gernot Krää; Stars: August Zirner, Anna Maria Sturm, Marlene Morreis, Johannes Zeiler, Fabian Hinrichs, Thomas Limpinsel, Peter Jordan, Frederic Linkemann, Andreas Nickl, Florian Brückner, Sigi Zimmerschied, Johannes Herrschmann, Monika Manz, Ines Honsel, Katharina Hauter)
Dramatisation of a 1980s protest against a nuclear reprocessing plant in a small Bavarian community
International premiere
When The Trees Fall (Koly padayut dereva)
(Country: Ukraine, Poland, Macedonia; Year: 2018; Director: Marysia Nikitiuk; Writer: Marysia Nikitiuk; Stars: Anastasia Pustovit, Sofia Khalaimova, Maksym Samchyk, Maria Svizhinska, Petro Pastukhov)
Veering between brutal reality and a surreal fairy-tale world, the stories of three generations of people in the Ukraine unfold. Their lives are marked by sexual desire, aggression and violence.
Widows
(Country: UK, US; Year: 2018; Director: Steve McQueen; Writer: Gillian Flynn, Steve McQueen, Lynda La Plante; Stars: Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Debicki, Liam Neeson, Colin Farrell, Jon Bernthal, Michelle Rodriguez, Robert Duvall, Garret Dillahunt, Viola Davis, Daniel Kaluuya, Lukas Haas, Jacki Weaver, Brian Tyree Henry, Kevin J. O'Connor, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo)
Women left in debt by their dead husbands' crimes conspire to pull off a heist.
Winter Flies (Všechno bude)
(Country: Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland, Slovakia; Year: 2018; Director: Olmo Omerzu; Writer: Petr Pýcha; Stars: Tomás Mrvík, Jan Frantisek Uher, Eliska Krenková, Lenka Vlasáková, Martin Pechlát, Tomás Mrvík, Jan Frantisek Uher, Eliska Krenková, Lenka Vlasáková, Martin Pechlát)
Mischievously self-assured Mára and somewhat eccentric Heduš set out into the frozen wastes in search of adventure – by car, naturally. After all, Mára's turning 15 soon.
Sunset and Capernaum
With All My Hypothalamus
(Country: Philippines; Year: 2018; Director: Dwein Baltazar; Writer: Dwein Baltazar; Stars: Iana Bernardez, Nicco Manalo, Anthony Falcon, Dylan Ray Talon, Soliman Cruz, Ash Nicanor, Nestor Abrogena Jr., Angely Castroverde, Iana Bernardez, Nicco Manalo, Anthony Falcon, Dylan Ray Talon, Soliman Cruz, Ash Nicanor, Nestor Abrogena Jr.)
The stories of several men are linked by their attraction to a young woman.
Yellow Submarine
(Country: UK, US; Year: 1968; Director: George Dunning; Writer: Lee Minoff, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Lee Minoff, Al Brodax, Jack Mendelsohn, Erich Segal, Roger McGough; Stars: The Beatles, Paul Angelis, John Clive, Dick Emery, Geoffrey Hughes, Lance Percival, Peter Batten, George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, The Beatles, Paul Angelis, John Clive, Dick Emery)
Four Liverpool lads take a trip on a Yellow Submarine to save Pepperland from the Blue Meanies.
Yomeddine
(Country: Egypt, US, Austria; Year: 2018; Director: AB Shawky; Writer: AB Shawky; Stars: Rady Gamal, Ahmed Abdelhafiz, Shahira Fahmy)
A Coptic leper and his orphaned apprentice leave the confines of the leper colony for the first time and embark on a journey across Egypt to search for what is left of their families.
Yuli
(Country: Spain; Year: 2018; Director: Icíar Bollaín; Writer: Paul Laverty; Stars: Edison Manuel Olvera, Mario Elias, Carlos Enrique Almirante, Carlos Acosta, Santiago Alfonso, Andrea Doimeadiós, Laura De la Uz, Carlos Acosta, Keyvin Martínez, Cesar Domínguez, Yerlín Pérez, Carlos Enrique Almirante, Andrea Doimeadiós, Laura De la Uz, Keyvin Martínez)
The true story of Carlos Acosta, a black Cuban dancer who rose from an impoverished childhood to find international acclaim as a ballet dancer with London's Royal Ballet.