Skip to main content

Edinburgh International Film Festival · 2016

Edinburgh International Film Festival 2016

Best Of British

Programme

20 films · 14 reviews

Jump to a film

Adult Life Skills

Review preview for Adult Life Skills

Charm' is just one of the words, and others like 'winsome' are right there - it manages this without ever feeling forced, without ever feeling twee - and that makes it a triumph.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Anna is stuck: she’s approaching 30, living in her mother’s shed, and spending her time making movies with her thumbs. Her mom wants her to move out; she just wants to be left alone.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Rachel Tunnard; Writer: Rachel Tunnard; Stars: Jodie Whittaker, Edward Hogg, Lorraine Ashbourne, Alice Lowe, Brett Goldstein, Andrew Buckley, Christian Contreras, Eileen Davies, David Anderson, Rachael Deering, Ozzy Myers)

Away

A suicidal widower forms an unlikely bond with a woman who has fled her abusive ex.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: David Blair; Writer: Roger Hadfield; Stars: Juno Temple, Timothy Spall, Matt Ryan, Susan Lynch, Tony Pitts, Hayley Squires, Reece Noi, Terry Stone, Joanna Roth, Melanie Clare, Adam Riley, Liz Hulme Davison, Dannielle Raine Meyer)

Bliss!

Review preview for Bliss!

So much depends on Freya Park's performance as Tasha. She achieves something many young actors would be afraid to try.

Angus Wolfe Murray · 3 out of 5
A runaway teen goes in search of her father.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Rita Osei; Writer: Alex Ferguson, Rita Osei, Rita Osei, Jenny Wilkes; Stars: David Leon, Reece Noi, Joshua Osei, Montserrat Lombard, Lars Arentz-Hansen, Freya Parks, Kim Tserkezie, Gitte Witt, Philip Correia, Hilary Tones, Lauren Johns, Jimmy Knights, Emma James, Natasha Haws, Chloe Cuskin)

Brakes

Review preview for Brakes

This is how Brakes comes across. Cynical and homemade.

Angus Wolfe Murray · 2 out of 5
Improvised black comedy charting moments in the lives of nine couples.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Mercedes Grower; Writer: Mercedes Grower; Stars: Julian Barratt, Kelly Campbell, Seb Cardinal, Juliet Cowan, Julia Davis, Noel Fielding, Kerry Fox, Roland Gift, Salena Godden, Mercedes Grower, Martin Hancock, Kate Hardie, Siobhan Hewlett, Oliver Maltman, Paul McGann)

The Carer

Review preview for The Carer

Though it is Cox's turn that grabs, it is Konig's that delights.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
An ageing actor strikes up a relationship with his Hungarian emigre carer.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: János Edelényi; Writer: Gilbert Adair, János Edelényi, Tom Kinninmont; Stars: Brian Cox, Anna Chancellor, Emilia Fox, Coco König, Karl Johnson, Selina Cadell, Andrew Havill, Roger Moore, Richard Ridings, Andor Lukáts, Emily Bevan, Ruth Posner, Maitland Chandler, Adam Morris, Paul Bown)

Jet Trash

A pair of hard-partying British ex-pats find their hedonistic life in India threatened by a face from the past.

(Country: UK, India; Year: 2016; Director: Charles Henri Belleville; Writer: Dan M Brown, Simon Lewis; Stars: Sofia Boutella, Robert Sheehan, Craig Parkinson, Jasper Pääkkönen, Joelle Koissi, Adelayo Adedayo, Osy Ikhile, Phelim Kelly, Rajendranath Zutshi, Roy Thorn, Ashley Radford, Dean Kingdon, Bharat Bhatia, Mansoor Ahmed Khan, Sonika Lotliker)

Kids In Love

A young man gets drawn into a Bohemian circle when falls in love.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Chris Foggin; Writer: Sebastian De Souza, Preston Thompson; Stars: Will Poulter, Alma Jodorowsky, Sebastian De Souza, Preston Thompson, Cara Delevingne, Gala Gordon, Jamie Blackley, Pip Torrens, Geraldine Somerville, Jack Fox, Akash Heer, Alexander Pelling-Bruce, Aki Omoshaybi, Daisy Hughes, Genevieve Gaunt)

The Library Suicides (Y Llyfrgell)

Twin sisters plan to avenge their mother's suicide.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Euros Lyn; Writer: Fflur Dafydd; Stars: Catrin Stewart, Dyfan Dwyfor, Ryland Teifi, Carwyn Glyn, Sharon Morgan)

Macbeth Unhinged

Review preview for Macbeth Unhinged

The film is strongest when it is being visually and aurally adventurous.

Robert Munro · 3 out of 5
Modern interpretation of the tragedy, set within the confines of a stretch limousine.

(Country: US; Year: 2016; Director: Angus Macfadyen; Writer: Angus Macfadyen, based on the play by William Shakespeare; Stars: Angus Macfadyen, Taylor Roberts, Kevin McNally, Harry Lennix, Seth Numrich, Samuel Roukin, Daven Ralston, Devin Druid, Olivia Maxwell, Hilary Montgomery, Greg Cooper, Justin Sease, Jonas Swenholt, Annabelle Bradstreet, Sheri Lahris)

Moon Dogs

Review preview for Moon Dogs

A really enjoyable piece of Celtic cinema.

Robert Munro · 4 out of 5
Two teenage step-brothers head on a road trip across Scotland.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Philip John; Writer: Derek Boyle, Raymond Friel; Stars: Jack Parry Jones, Christy O'Donnel, Tara Lee, Chris Donald, Tam Dean Burn, Tanya Franks, Geoffrey Newland, Shauna Macdonald, Jamie Sives, Kate Bracken, Claire Cage, Craig McDonald-Kelly, Dennis Lawson)

My Feral Heart

Review preview for My Feral Heart

Gull has a keen eye for nature, beautifully captured by cinematographer Susanne Salavati.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
An independent man with Down's syndrome finds his life changed when he is forced into a group home.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Jane Gull; Writer: Duncan Paveling; Stars: Suzanna Hamilton, Pixie Le Knot, Darren Kent, Sara Dee, Eileen Pollock, Will Rastall, Shana Swash, Jason Wright, Lewis Nicolas, Steven Brandon, Kerryann White, Keith Chanter, Joe Gooch, Matt Markham, Logan Dean)

Pale Star

Review preview for Pale Star

A thrillingly cinematic film.

Robert Munro · 5 out of 5
An abusive relationship forms the backdrop for this Nordic noir.

(Country: UK, Iceland; Year: 2016; Director: Graeme Maley; Writer: Graeme Maley; Stars: Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson, Freyja Björk Guðmundsdóttir, Isabelle Joss, Iain Robertson, Björn Thors, Þrúður Vilhjálmsdóttir)

A Patch Of Fog

Review preview for A Patch Of Fog

Despite the considerable talents of the two leads it all ends up feeling rather flat.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
A security guard blackmails a TV host.

(Country: UK; Year: 2015; Director: Michael Lennox; Writer: John Cairns, Michael McCartney; Stars: Conleth Hill, Lara Pulver, Karen Hassan, Stephen Graham, Ian McElhinney, Arsher Ali, Paul Kennedy, James Edlin, Andrew Porter, James Bleakney, Laurence Doherty, Sanjay Ghosh, Chrissie Harris, Bobby Marno, Felicity McKee)

Pikadero

Review preview for Pikadero

A fine, observant comedy from a young director who takes chances that pay off and who, like his two main characters, has plenty of potential.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
A couple's fledgling relationship comes under pressure as they struggle to find time alone.

(Country: UK, Spain; Year: 2015; Director: Ben Sharrock; Writer: Ben Sharrock; Stars: Bárbara Goenaga, Lander Otaola, Itziar Lazkano, Zorion Eguileor, Ylenia Baglietto, Joseba Usabiaga, Galder Pérez, Peio Arnáez)

A Reykjavík Porno

Nordic noir about a student who becomes obsessed with a teenager who has been uploading online pornography.

(Country: UK, Iceland; Year: 2016; Director: Graeme Maley; Writer: Graeme Maley; Stars: Ylfa Edelstein, Salome R. Gunnarsdottir, Pálmi Gestsson, Albert Halldórsson, Tinna Sverrisdóttir, Þuríður Blær Jóhannsdóttir, Kjartan Darri Kristjánsson)

Seat In Shadow

Review preview for Seat In Shadow

Henry Coombes' film contains some highly entertaining banter.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A painter who doubles as a psychotherapist tries to help a young man battling depression.

(Year: 2016; Director: Henry Coombes; Writer: Henry Coombes, David Sillars; Stars: David Sillars, Jonathan Leslie, Lee Partridge, Henry Coombes)

Starfish

Review preview for Starfish

Froggatt and Riley... give finely calibrated performances that make you believe not just in the couple's current predicament but in the strength of their bond.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
A couple’s relationship is tested when the husband is struck by a rare disease.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Bill Clark; Writer: Bill Clark; Stars: Joanne Froggatt, Tom Riley, Phoebe Nicholls, Michele Dotrice, Simon Bamford, Alexandra Doyle, Katie Pattinson, Oliver Cunliffe, Daisy Moore, David Carr, Christopher Howitt, Greg Haiste, Ellie Copping, Max Krupski, Sophie Bephage)

Tiger Raid

Review preview for Tiger Raid

Tiger Raid is great.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Two mercenaries in Iraq speed through the dead of night, on their way to execute a covert mission.

(Country: UK, Ireland; Year: 2016; Director: Simon Dixon; Writer: Simon Dixon, Mick Donnellan, Gareth Coulam Evans; Stars: Sofia Boutella, Brian Gleeson, Damien Molony, Rory Fleck-Byrne)

White Island

Review preview for White Island

It is a comic thriller that is not particularly comic nor particularly thrilling.

Andrew Robertson · 2 out of 5
Comic thriller about an ex-DJ who finds himself drawn back into the seedy underworld of Ibiza.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Benjamin Turner; Writer: Colin Butts; Stars: Billy Zane, Billy Boyd, Ben Cura, Steve I Gilbert, Gala Gordon, Darren Day, Craig Gazey, Cheryl Fergison, Lyndon Ogbourne, Owain Arthur, Carl Cox, Example, Scarlett Archer, Ben Mars, Joel Dommett)

The White King

In a dystopian future, a young boy tries to free his dad.

(Country: UK; Year: 2016; Director: Alex Helfrecht, Jörg Tittel; Writer: Alex Helfrecht, Jörg Tittel, based on the novel by György Dragomán; Stars: Jonathan Pryce, Olivia Williams, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Agyness Deyn, Fiona Shaw, Greta Scacchi, Jeffrey Postlethwaite, Clare-Hope Ashitey, Matthew Postlethwaite, Derek de Lint, Ross Partridge, Louis Suc, Björn Freiberg, Ton Kas, Lorenzo Allchurch)