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Edinburgh International Film Festival · 2015

Edinburgh International Film Festival 2015

New Perspectives

New work from emerging directors.

Programme

30 films · 14 reviews

Jump to a film

Breathe Umphefumlo

A version of La Boheme, set in a South African township.

(Country: South Africa, UK, Germany; Year: 2015; Director: Mark Dornford-May; Writer: Luigi Illica, Giuseppe Giacosa, Pauline Malefane, Mark Dornford-May; Stars: Noluthando Boqwana, Zamile Gantana, Sifiso Lupuzi, Pauline Malefane, Zebulon Mmusi, Mhlekazi Mosiea, Busisiwe Ngejane, Luvo Rasemeni)

UK premiere

The Chambermaid Lynn (Das Zimmermädchen Lynn)

An obsessive chambermaid meetsan androgynous dominatrix.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Ingo Haeb; Writer: Ingo Haeb; Stars: Vicky Krieps, Lena Lauzemis)

UK premiere

The Circle

Review preview for The Circle

The mysteries left unresolved after the near two and a half hours are more puzzling than compelling.

Andrew Robertson · 3 out of 5
Six teenagers discover they have acquired supernatural powers as part of an ancient prophecy to fight evil.

(Country: Sweden; Year: 2015; Director: Levan Akin; Writer: Levan Akin, Sara Bergmark Elfgren, Sara Bergmark Elfgren, Mats Strandberg; Stars: Josefin Asplund, Helena Engström, Miranda Frydman, Irma von Platen, Hanna Asp, Leona Axelsen, Ruth Vega Fernandez, Sebastian Hiort af Ornäs, Vincent Grahl, Johanna Granström, Sverrir Gudnason, Dick Idman, Gustav Lindh, Ann-Sofie Nurmi, Charlie Petersson)

Full review

UK premiere

Eadweard

Review preview for Eadweard

If you're going to make a film about the man considered to the be the "father of modern cinema" then it had better look good and debut feature director Kyle Rideout and his cinematographer Tony Mirza take this task to heart.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
Biopic of photographic pioneer Eadweard Muybridge.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2015; Director: Kyle Rideout; Writer: Josh Epstein, Kyle Rideout, Josh Epstein, Kyle Rideout; Stars: Michael Eklund, Sara Canning, Christopher Heyerdahl, Charlie Carrick, Jodi Balfour, Torrance Coombs, Jonathon Young, Kett Turton, William C. Vaughan, Ian Tracey, Jordana Largy, Josh Epstein, Daniel Arnold, Gaelan Beatty, Arien Boey)

Full review

European premiere

The Farewell Party (Mita Tova)

A group of retirees are pressured into helping an assisted suicide... and news of their actions starts to spread.

(Country: Israel, Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Tal Granit, Sharon Maymon; Writer: Tal Granit, Sharon Maymon; Stars: Ze'ev Revach, Levana Finkelstein, Aliza Rosen, Ilan Dar, Raffi Tavor, Yosef Carmon, Hilla Sarjon, Assaf Ben-Shimon, Ilanit Dado, Ruth Farhi, Ruth Geller, Mia Katan, Orli Katan, Jamil Khoury, Itzik Konfino)

UK premiere

Fidelio, Alice's Odyssey (Fidelio, L'odyssée d'Alice, Fidelio: Alice's Journey)

Review preview for Fidelio, Alice's Odyssey

We see events from Alice's perspective, meaning that, unusually, she is positioned more as the desiring subject than the desired object within the narrative.

Rebecca Naughten · 4 out of 5
Alice replaces a recently deceased mechanic onboard Fidelio, an old freighter, and sets off on a voyage of self-discovery.

(Country: France; Year: 2014; Director: Lucie Borleteau; Writer: Lucie Borleteau, Clara Bourreau; Stars: Ariane Labed, Melvil Poupaud, Anders Danielsen Lie, Pascal Tagnati, Jean-Louis Coulloc'h, Nathanael Maïni, Bogdan Zamfir, Corneliu Dragomirescu, Manuel Ramirez, Thomas Scimeca, Jan Priva, Luc Catania)

Full review

UK premiere

The Gulls (Chaiki)

A woman struggles with life in a loveless marriage.

(Country: Russia; Year: 2015; Director: Ella Manzheeva; Stars: Evgeniy Sangadzhiev)

UK premiere

Index Zero

In a future world, a couple struggle to stay together against a backdrop where some humans are considered to be no longer sustainable.

(Country: UK, Italy; Year: 2014; Director: Lorenzo Sportiello; Writer: Lorenzo Sportiello, Claudio Corbucci, Francesco Cioce; Stars: Simon Merrells, Ana Ularu, Antonia Liskova, Velislav Pavlov, Mario Draganov, Meto Jovanovski, Alexandra Lopez, Hristo Mitzkov, Mya-Lecia Naylor, Anton Poriazov, Bashar Rahal, George Zlatarev)

International premiere

Inferno

Review preview for Inferno

There is no doubting Moderndorfer's intentions to present an anti-captialistic polemic but he pushes things so far here that they become unbelievable and, by the end, almost funny by default.

Amber Wilkinson · 2 out of 5
A family is caught in a spiral of unhappiness.

(Country: Slovenia, Croatia, Republic of Macedonia, Serbia; Year: 2014; Director: Vinko Moderndorfer; Writer: Vinko Moderndorfer; Stars: Jozica Avbelj, Ludvik Bagari, Silvo Bozic, Jan Bucar, Marko Bukvic, Sebastian Cavazza, Silva Cusin, Masa Derganc, Valter Dragan, Ana Facchini, Renato Jencek, Uros Kaurin, Vid Klemenc, Mirjam Korbar, Benjamin Krnetic)

Full review

UK premiere

It's Already Tomorrow In Hong Kong

A Before Sunset-style romance on the streets of Hong Kong.

(Country: US, Hong Kong; Year: 2015; Director: Emily Ting; Writer: Emily Ting, Emily Ting; Stars: Jamie Chung, Bryan Greenberg, Richard Ng, Sarah Lian, Lawrence S. Dickerson, Ines Laimins, Joshua Wong, Zach Hines, Linda Trinh, Jaeden Cheng, Collin Leydon, Po-Chih Leong, Dave Waheed, Harry Du Young, Emily Ting)

International premiere

Kafka's The Burrow (Kafka's Der Bau)

Review preview for Kafka's The Burrow

The buildup of clutter over the course of the film is its most appealing visual metaphor.

Luke Shaw · 2 out of 5
Adaptation of a Kafka short story about loneliness and isolation.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Jochen Alexander Freydank; Writer: Jochen Alexander Freydank; Stars: Axel Prahl, Josef Hader, Kristina Klebe, Robert Stadlober, Roeland Wienekkerr, Devid Striesow, Fritz Roth, Erwin Leder)

Full review

UK premiere

Koza (Goat)

Review preview for Koza

Its refusal to treat fights as spectacle, together with its austere editing and static camera, provides a melancholic grounding.

Luke Shaw · 4 out of 5
A boxer comes out of retirement to help his girlfriend pay for an abortion.

(Country: Slovakia, Czech Republic; Year: 2015; Director: Ivan Ostrochovsky; Stars: Peter Balaz, Zvonko Lakcevic, Jan Franek,Stanislava Bongilajova, Nikola Bongilajova, Tatiana Piussi)

Full review

UK premiere

Kyoto Elegy (Manga niku to boku)

Review preview for Kyoto Elegy

Unfortunately, it’s all rather muddled.

Luke Shaw · 2.5 out of 5
Three women have an impact on the life of a selfish would-be lawyer.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2014; Director: Kiki Sugino; Writer: Kiki Sugino; Stars: Chisun, Takahiro Miura, Yûko Miyamoto, Nobumitsu Ohnishi, Kiki Sugino, Taiga, Yoshimi Tokui, Eri Tokunaga)

Full review

UK premiere

Len And Company

An antisocial music producer has his life shaken up by the arrival of his son and a trouble pop star.

(Country: US; Year: 2015; Director: Tim Godsall; Writer: Tim Godsall, Katharine Knight; Stars: Juno Temple, Kathryn Hahn, Rhys Ifans, Keir Gilchrist, Jack Kilmer, Peter Outerbridge, Elias Toufexis, Dale Whibley, Tyler Hynes, Mark O'Brien, Jenny Raven, Jonathan Potts, Billy Morrison, Chris Young, Michael Facciolo)

World premiere

The Lesson (Urok)

Review preview for The Lesson

Ethical acts are met with punishment and moments of kindness are just fleeting enough to make the next torque of tension feel all the more severe.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
A provincial schoolteacher is faced with tough choices due to mounting debts.

(Country: Bulgaria, Greece; Year: 2014; Director: Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov ; Writer: Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov; Stars: Margita Gosheva, Ivan Barnev, Ivan Savov, Stefan Denolyubov, Ivanka Bratoeva, Poli Angelova, Kiril Bakalov, Mihail Boevski, Atanas Bratoev, Georgi Bratoev, Ana Bratoeva, Nadejda Bratoeva, Boris Doychinov, Vanina Geleva, Antoaneta Guleva)

Full review See: London Film Festival 2008 preview and recommended films

UK premiere

Love Film Festival

Review preview for Love Film Festival

As a project, Love Film Festival is impressive - four directors, four countries, polylingual, starting in 2009 and finishing (by my arithmetic) in 2016. As a film, maybe less so.

Andrew Robertson · 3 out of 5
A love affair set against the backdrop of the short film festival circuit.

(Country: Brazil, US, Portugal, Colombia; Year: 2014; Director: Juancho Cardona, Vinicius Coimbra, Manuela Dias, Bruno Safadi; Writer: Manuela Dias, Manuela Dias; Stars: Manolo Cardona, Ángela Vergara, Leandra Leal, Nanda Costa, Eduardo Moscovis, Natália Lage, Gustavo Machado, Ângela Leal, Álvaro Bayona)

Full review

European premiere

Love, Theft And Other Entanglements (Al-hob wa al-sariqa wa mashakel ukhra)

A car thief finds he has militants on his tail after he steals the wrong car.

(Country: Palestine; Year: 2015; Director: Muayad Alayan; Writer: Muayad Alayan, Rami Musa Alayan; Stars: Maya Abu Alhayyat, Mustafa Abu Hanood, Valantina Abu Osqa, Mahmood Alayan, Tariq Alayan, Osama Awad, Kamel El Basha, Nabil Hamouz, Louise Heem, Alba Laipe Sira, Ramzi Maqdisi, Sami Metwasi, Hussein Nakhleh, Fida Nasser, Mohammad Othman)

UK premiere

The Make-Up Room

Review preview for The Make-Up Room

Even if the film is maybe slightly over-long you also feel that this is deliberate, thought out and worked through.

Keith Hennessey Brown · 4 out of 5
Comedy about a make-up artist working on a porno film shoot.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2014; Director: Kei Morikawa; Writer: Kei Morikawa; Stars: Beni Itô, Nanami Kawakami, Lily Kuribayashi, Aki Morita, Takashi Naha, Kazuhiro Nakahara, Kentarô Sakai, Jin Satô, Akiyoshi Shibata, Takashi Shigematsu, Mariko Yoshimura)

Full review

UK premiere

Melbourne

Review preview for Melbourne

Javidi's conclusion is as smartly worked and surprising as his set up, marking a debut full of promise for better things to come.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
A young couple on the verge of emigration find their lives rocked by tragedy.

(Country: Iran; Year: 2014; Director: Nima Javidi; Writer: Nima Javidi; Stars: Roshanak Gerami, Mani Haghighi, Negar Javaherian, Vida Javan, Elham Korda, Peyman Moaadi, Alireza Ostadi, Shirin Yazdanbakhsh)

Full review

UK premiere

Night Shift

Drama about a woman whose life starts to unravel after she begins to suspect her husband.

(Country: Iran; Year: 2015; Director: Niki Karimi; Stars: Leila Zare, Mohammadreza Foroutan, Amir Arman, Amir Aghali)

International premiere

Our Family (Bokutachi no kazoku)

The illness of a family's matriarch brings financial pressures to a head.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2014; Director: Yûya Ishii; Writer: Kazumasa Hayami; Stars: Mieko Harada, Sosuke Ikematsu, Kyôzô Nagatsuka, Satoshi Tsumabuki)

UK premiere

Out Of Nature (Mot naturen)

Stream-of-consciousness trip with a mountain hiker.

(Country: Norway; Year: 2014; Director: Ole Giæver; Writer: Ole Giæver; Stars: Ole Giæver, Rebekka Nystabakk, Marte Magnusdotter Solem, Sivert Giæver Solem, Trond Peter Stamsø Munch)

UK premiere

Sand Dollars (Dólares de arena)

Review preview for Sand Dollars

This is a film filled with longing that, appropriately, leaves us yearning for more.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
A relationship blossoms between an older European and a young Dominican woman who makes her living 'befriending' foreigners at a beach resort.

(Country: Mexico, Argentina, Dominican Republic; Year: 2014; Director: Israel Cárdenas, Laura Amelia Guzmán; Writer: Israel Cárdenas, Laura Amelia Guzmán; Stars: Geraldine Chaplin, Yanet Mojica, Ricardo Ariel Toribio)

Full review

UK premiere

The Summer Of Sangaile

Seventeen-year-old Sangaile is fascinated by stunt planes. She meets a girl her age at the summer aeronautical show, nearby her parents’ lakeside villa. Sangaile allows Auste to discover her most intimate secret and in the process finds in her teenage love, the only person that truly encourages her to fly.

(Country: Lithuania, France, Netherlands; Year: 2015; Director: Alanté Kavaïté; Writer: Alanté Kavaïté, Alanté Kavaïté; Stars: Aiste Dirziute, Julija Steponaityte)

UK premiere

Therapy For A Vampire (Der Vampir auf der Couch)

Review preview for Therapy For A Vampire

Tobias Moretti and Jeanette Hain play the Count & Countess Közsnöm with arch reverence to vampire movies of old.

Luke Shaw · 3.5 out of 5
A vampire seeks assistance from Dr Freud.

(Country: Austria, Switzerland; Year: 2014; Director: David Rühm; Writer: David Rühm; Stars: Tobias Moretti, Jeanette Hain, Cornelia Ivancan, Dominic Oley, Karl Fischer, Erni Mangold, Lars Rudolph, Anatole Taubman, Julia Jelinek, Dominic Marcus Singer, Christoph F. Krutzler, Tobias Ofenbauer, Katharina Gorgi, Verena Altenberger, Christina Simhandl)

Full review

UK premiere

Through The Air (La résistance de l'air)

A rifle shooting champ finds himself faced with an ofer his financial woes make hard to refuse.

(Country: France; Year: 2015; Director: Fred Grivois; Writer: Thomas Bidegain, Noé Debré, Fred Grivois; Stars: Reda Kateb, Ludivine Sagnier, Tchéky Karyo, Johan Heldenbergh, Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre, Pascal Demolon, Emmanuel Bonami, Damien Bonnard, Lahcen Elmazouzi, Jehon Gorani, Gwendolyn Gourvenec, Yvonne Gradelet, Pauline Julien, Sebastien Sisak)

UK premiere

Tu Dors Nicole

A young woman is enjoying the summer in her parents' house whilst they are away, but when her brother arrives with his band, events take a different turn.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2014; Director: Stéphane Lafleur; Writer: Valérie Beaugrand-Champagne, Stéphane Lafleur; Stars: Marc-André Grondin, Julianne Côté, Fanny Mallette)

UK premiere

We Are Young. We Are Strong. (Wir sind jung. Wir sind stark.)

A group of disillusioned teenagers wander about in the restless hours leading up to an anti-immigrant riot that took place in Rostock, Germany, in August 1992. The impending incident is seen through the experiences of three individuals: a Vietnamese factory worker, a local politician, and the politician's teenage son Stefan.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Burhan Qurbani; Writer: Martin Behnke, Burhan Qurbani; Stars: Devid Striesow, Jonas Nay, Trang Le Hong, Joel Basman, Saskia Rosendahl, Thorsten Merten, Paul Gäbler, David Schütter, Jakob Bieber, Swantje Kohlhof, Mai Duong Kieu, Aaron Le, Larissa Fuchs, Axel Pape, Katrin Kaspar)

UK premiere

Who Am I - No System Is Safe

Review preview for Who Am I - No System Is Safe

Who Am I succeeds because it grounds its braggadocio in action that never feels beyond the realms of possibility.

Luke Shaw · 4 out of 5
A young hacker joins a subversive group intent on "hacking the world".

(Country: Germany; Year: 2014; Director: Baran bo Odar; Writer: Jantje Friese, Baran bo Odar; Stars: Tom Schilling, Elyas M'Barek, Wotan Wilke Möhring, Antoine Monot Jr., Hannah Herzsprung, Stephan Kampwirth, Trine Dyrholm, Leopold Hornung, Katharina Matz, Leonard Carow, Arndt Schwering-Sohnrey, Matthias Neukirch, Nils Borghardt, Alexander Hauff, Antonia Putiloff)

Full review See: Fokus: Films From Germany - season preview

UK premiere

You're Ugly Too

After her mother’s death, Stacey moves with her uncle Will to a remote region in the Irish midlands. As the two cautiously get to know each other, they have to deal with the dark shadows of the past.

(Country: Ireland; Year: 2015; Director: Mark Noonan; Writer: Mark Noonan; Stars: Aidan Gillen, George Pistereanu, Jesse Morris, Erika Sainte, Lauren Kinsella)

UK premiere