Glasgow Film Festival — A–Z of films

Although it could easily have been played as a farce, it’s friendship and human feeling that is the key to this film.

For fans of martial arts cinema, this is a must see.

I laughed, and was not alone in doing so, out loud, and repeatedly.

An overflowing life is presented to us through archival interviews and film clips, and most revealingly through on-camera insights from O’Brien herself.

Though likely a little too whimsical for some, Boys Go To Jupiter seems destined to develop a cult following.

Lin and Sun studiously maintain the enigma around Shuo so that we are left guessing as to whether he’s just a disadvantaged teen trying to make his way in the world or a cuckoo in the nest.

Don't read this review... simply go and see it, for if ever there was a film that is best experienced without knowing a single detail, this unforgettable oddity from Greece is the one.

If the humour works for you at all, you’ll find it a hoot.

Øverbye makes a compelling lead, taking on the chunks of voiceover without any problem but also excelling in terms of conveying her character’s moods via body language

Dying is full of glorious contradictions, many of which occur within the same conversation

It’s ironic that a film about a family who have built a perfect facsimile of a life for themselves should feel so overly constructed itself

This non-sensationalist approach allows much more room to address the psychological effects of prison life itself, whilst emphasising the mundanity of much of what happened under the Nazis.

The real pleasure of the film is in the non-stop parade of funny, well-observed scenes and killer lines of dialogue.

At times the discomfort that Harvest causes is not from dirt or despair but the room it leaves for interpretation.

Hidden is no conventional mystery and viewers searching for straightforward answers to the questions that it raises are likely to be disappointed.

Premo never imposes an overt framing narrative, but interesting things emerge.

The plot is not the film’s strongest point, but it functions well enough as a device through which to explore a troubled relationship.

Her honesty cuts through you like an Arctic storm

It is a brave film that portrays Idi Amin not simply as a monster, but as a complex individual.

In this tangled tapestry, Russell has captured the soul of a nation.

It’s not particularly dramatic and it doesn’t deal in miracles, but it’s a deeply engaging and enjoyable piece of work.

Ott’s interest is not in creating an accurate depiction of exactly what happened in the run-up to the Oklahoma City bombing, but rather in exploring the thought processes behind it.

There’s a sweet, melancholy flavour to Clapin’s work.

Diaz has drawn partially on his relationship with his own mother and the specificity of place and time also help the tensions to feel authentic.

A film that is built upon patience and which takes a philosophical rather than judgmental stance.

In this hothouse, madness easily exerts its grip.

A Mother’s Embrace has an organic quality. Even its strangest elements feel convincingly part of the whole.

Production designers Manolito Glas and Maarten Piersma do a stunning job with the sets, creating an atmosphere of sleaze and decay which one can almost smell, whilst layering in detail.

The director and her co-writer Alice Winocour side with their young protagonists, drawing on their boundless energy to tell their story in the spirit of a fable and in a way that makes it accessible to younger audiences.

Marie-Claire Marcotte’s feature début demonstrates an astute awareness of what it’s like to be eight.

Carreira shows how quiet desperation can be eroding

Comic invention rides shotgun on a screenplay that runs wild.

Shot over 17 years, it mingles intimate personal moments with visceral concert footage, its musical sequences knitted together with some of the best editing you’re likely to see this year.

Haneke documents the humiliation and the desire, as a newsman might report a suicide. He is careful not to intrude and yet insistent on seeing everything.

A moody, unsettling piece.

A confident and well-constructed tale that is built on the firm foundations of a great ensemble cast.

Achour does a fine job of binding us to his adolescent hero’s perspective, as the boy tries to process the death and what it means within the limited framework of ideas available to him.

[Hart] doesn’t turn up the volume, but uses tone and repetition so effectively that the film becomes a microcosm of the real experience.

Fiennes is lean in look and in performance, bringing an intensity that proves compelling.

There isn’t an ornament that feels out of place and you can almost smell the kitchen chip fat and butterfly bun icing as you gaze around Bobby’s home, with its orange pine and associated shades of brown.

The beautiful cinematography, the bluesy jazz score and the gentle pace of the film are beguiling, but Masciari makes sure that we don’t lose sight of the ridiculous.

The heat is omnipresent, rippling through the air, distorting what we see, distorting time and identity.

This is England is, quite simply, the best British film for years. If you're underage, sneak into this film.

The script is lean, the sword edges keen and the characters mean.

As sentimental as it is endearing.

A wild story delivered with verve and a suitable degree of irreverence.

Given that U Are The Universe is practically a one-man-play, Volodymyr Kravchuk masterfully commands the screen combining his knack for humour with a strong sense for drama.

Naturalism is the lifeblood of Das’ films and this one is no different

Well shot and well paced, Zero has a lot to offer in spite of its twee moments.