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Flare · 2017

Flare 2017

Bodies

Programme

17 films · 6 reviews

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1:54

High school bullying gets dangerously out of control.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2016; Director: Yan England; Writer: Yan England; Stars: Antoine-Olivier Pilon, Sophie Nélisse, David Boutin)

Below Her Mouth

Review preview for Below Her Mouth

A simple story told well, this is an affecting piece of cinema that punches well above its weight.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Two women embark on a passionate affair that derails their lives.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2016; Director: April Mullen; Writer: Stephanie Fabrizi; Stars: Daniela Barbosa, Elise Bauman, Sophie Blumenthal)

Full review

Body Electric ( Corpo Elétrico)

A young deputy manager in a garment factory is drawn into socialising with his workers despite being warned that it could lead to trouble.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2017; Director: Marcelo Caetano; Writer: Marcelo Caetano; Stars: Kelner Macedo, Lucas Andrade, Welket Bungué)

Don't Call Me Son (Mãe Só Há Uma)

Gender fluid teen Pierre becomes the focus of a shocking family secret on a journey of displacement and discovery.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2016; Director: Anna Muylaert; Writer: Anna Muylaert; Stars: Naomi Nero, Daniel Botelho, Dani Nefusi)

FTWTF: Female To What The Fuck

A documentary about trans people with a particular focus on non-binary people.

(Country: Austria; Year: 2015; Director: Katharina Lampert, Cordula Thym)

The Handmaiden (Agassi)

Review preview for The Handmaiden

One of the film’s leading forces is its stunning visual composition.

Evelin Toth · 5 out of 5
A handmaiden sets out to swindle an heiress but things don't go to plan.

(Country: South Korea; Year: 2016; Director: Park Chan-wook; Writer: Based on Sarah Waters' Fingersmith; Stars: Ha Jung-woo, Kim Min-hee, Jo Jin-woong, Kim Tae Ri)

Full review

It's Only The End Of The World (Juste la fin du monde)

Review preview for It's Only The End Of The World

The histrionics on display submerge everything else while the narrative pitch throws so much at the spectator that it is impossible to sympathise with anyone.

Richard Mowe · 2 out of 5
A writer returns home after a long absence to tell his family he is terminally ill.

(Country: Canada, France; Year: 2016; Director: Xavier Dolan; Writer: Xavier Dolan, Jean-Luc Lagarce; Stars: Léa Seydoux, Marion Cotillard, Vincent Cassel, Gaspard Ulliel, Nathalie Baye)

Full review

Jesus

Jesús, 18, lives alone with his father Hector in a flat where the TV covers up their inability to communicate. One night, his thrill-seeking goes too far.

(Country: Chile; Year: 2016; Director: Fernando Guzzoni; Writer: Fernando Guzzoni; Stars: Nicolás Durán, Alejandro Goic)

Memories Of A Penitent Heart

Like many gay men in the 1980s, Miguel moved from Puerto Rico to New York City; he found a career in theater and a rewarding relationship. Yet, on his deathbed he grappled to reconcile his homosexuality with his Catholic upbringing. Now, decades after his death, his niece Cecilia locates Miguel’s estranged lover to understand the truth, and in the process opens up long-dormant family secrets.

(Country: US, Puerto Rico; Year: 2015; Director: Cecilia Aldarondo)

Miles

Review preview for Miles

An astute, intelligent character study which neatly captures what may prove to be an important turning point in social history.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
In a desperate bid to get the college scholarship he needs, a teenage boy joins the girls’ volleyball team.

(Country: US; Year: 2016; Director: Nathan Adloff; Writer: Nathan Adloff, Justin DM Palmer; Stars: Tim Boardman, Molly Shannon, Stephen Root)

Full review

The Ornithologist (O Ornitólogo)

Review preview for The Ornithologist

In keeping with the hagiographic tradition, Hamy keeps his performance rather flat, but this is problematic for The Ornothologist as a film; its success as a piece of art is somewhat at odds with audience appeal.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
An ornithologist searching for black storks is swept away by rapids and awakens in a mysterious, dark forest.

(Country: Portugal, France, Brazil; Year: 2016; Director: João Pedro Rodrigues; Writer: João Pedro Rodrigues, João Rui Guerra da Mata; Stars: Paul Hamy, Xelo Cagiao, João Pedro Rodrigues, Han Wen, Chan Suan, Juliane Elting )

Full review

The Pearl Of Africa

A documentary about Cleopatra Kambugu, the first out trans woman in modern Uganda, and her journey to Thailand for life-changing surgery.

(Country: Sweden; Year: 2016; Director: Jonny von Wallström; Stars: Cleopatra Kambugu)

Pushing Dead

A black comedy about a deadbeat HIV-positive writer struggling with his medication, his life and his friends.

(Country: US; Year: 2016; Director: Tom E Brown; Stars: James Roday, Danny Glover, Robin Weigert, Tom Riley)

Raising Zoey

A documentary about a trans Latina girl and what family support achieves for her.

(Country: US; Year: 2016; Director: Dante Alencastre)

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)

Full review

The Trans List

A celebration of successful trans celebrities.

(Country: US; Year: 2016; Director: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders; Stars: Caitlyn Jenner, Laverne Cox, Buck Angel)

The Untamed (La región salvaje)

A mysterious young woman is convinced that something otherworldly could be the answer to all of her family's problems.

(Country: Mexico, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland; Year: 2016; Director: Amat Escalante; Writer: Amat Escalante, Gibrán Portela; Stars: Kenny Johnston)