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London Film Festival · 2019

London Film Festival 2019

Debate

Programme

27 films · 14 reviews

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The Australian Dream

Documentary about the Australian Rules football star Adam Goodes.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2019; Director: Daniel Gordon; Writer: Stan Grant; Stars: Adam Goodes, Stan Grant, Nova Peris, Gilbert McAdam, Tracey Holmes, Linda Burney, Nicky Winmar, Nathan Buckley, Natalie Goodes, Adam Goodes, Stan Grant, Nova Peris, Gilbert McAdam, Tracey Holmes, Linda Burney)

By The Grace Of God

Review preview for By The Grace Of God

Ozon does not smooth over the rough edges and the icy roads stay icy.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4.5 out of 5
When Alexandre learns that the priest who abused him as a boy is still working with children, he and other victims take action against the perpetrator.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: François Ozon; Writer: François Ozon; Stars: Melvil Poupaud, Denis Ménochet, Swann Arlaud, Josiane Balasko, Frédéric Pierrot, Éric Caravaca, Hélène Vincent, Bernard Verley, François Marthouret, François Chattot, Aurélia Petit, John Sehil, Jules Gauzelin, Martine Erhel, Olivier Faliez)

Full review

Citizen K

The story of Mikhail Khodorkovsky – a man who went from being the wealthiest person in Russia to an unlikely martyr.

(Country: UK, US; Year: 2019; Director: Alex Gibney; Writer: Alex Gibney; Stars: Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Vladimir Putin, Leonid Nevzlin, Boris Berezovsky, Igor Malashenko, Anton Drel, Boris Yeltsin, Alexei Navalny, Tatyana Lysova, Maria Logan, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Vladimir Putin, Leonid Nevzlin, Boris Berezovsky, Igor Malashenko)

Clemency

Review preview for Clemency

Despite the raw power of its performances, the film suffers from an impulse to spell out some of its points.

Jeremy Mathews · 3.5 out of 5
Years of carrying out death row executions have taken a toll on prison warden Bernadine Williams. As she prepares to execute another inmate, Bernadine must confront the psychological and emotional demons her job creates, ultimately connecting her to the man she is sanctioned to kill.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Chinonye Chukwu; Writer: Chinonye Chukwu; Stars: Alfre Woodard, Richard Schiff, Aldis Hodge, LaMonica Garrett, Wendell Pierce, Noshir Dalal, Vernee Watson, Michael O'Neill, Danielle Brooks, Dennis Haskins, Debbie Pollack, Michelle C. Bonilla, Richard Gunn, Jed Bernard, Anahi Bustillos)

Full review

Corpus Christi

Review preview for Corpus Christi

There are themes around punishment and forgiveness running throughout this film but they're rarely simple.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Daniel who experiences a spiritual transformation in a Youth Detention Centre. The crime he commits prevents him from applying to the seminary... but Daniel has no intention of giving up his dream.

(Country: Poland; Year: 2019; Director: Jan Komasa; Writer: Mateusz Pacewicz; Stars: Bartosz Bielenia, Aleksandra Konieczna, Eliza Rycembel, Tomasz Zietek, Barbara Kurzaj, Leszek Lichota, Zdzislaw Wardejn, Lukasz Simlat, Anna Biernacik, Lidia Bogacz, Malwina Brych, Bogdan Brzyski, Juliusz Chrzastowski, Radoslaw Ciucias, Mateusz Czwartosz)

Full review See: Jan Komasa in conversation on Andrey Zvyagintsev and the composers for Corpus Christi (Boże Ciało), Bartosz Bielenia and Christopher Walken

County Lines

Drama about a boy, 14, who is used as a drugs mule by traffickers.

(Country: UK; Year: 2019; Director: Henry Blake; Writer: Henry Blake; Stars: Harris Dickinson, Marcus Rutherford, Ashley Madekwe, Clay Milner Russell, Conrad Khan, Chizzy Akudolu, Shauna Shim, Carlyss Peer, Johanna Stanton, Mika Wingate, Stephen Leask, Fen Wilson, Anthony Adjekum, Michael Oku, Sean Berry)

Desrances

A family comes under strain as civil war looms.

(Country: Burkina Faso; Year: 2019; Director: Apolline Traoré; Stars: Jimmy Jean-Louis, Jimmy Jean-Louis)

The Girl With A Bracelet (La Fille Au Bracelet)

Review preview for The Girl With A Bracelet

This is the sort of story that will be familiar to viewers of the likes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as the lifestyle of the accused is put on trial as much as her actions.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
Courtroom drama about a teenager caught up in a murder case.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Stéphane Demoustier; Writer: Stéphane Demoustier; Stars: Melissa Guers, Roschdy Zem, Anaïs Demoustier, Annie Mercier, Pascal Garbarini, Chiara Mastroianni, Melissa Guers, Roschdy Zem, Anaïs Demoustier, Annie Mercier, Pascal Garbarini, Chiara Mastroianni)

Full review

A Hidden Life

Review preview for A Hidden Life

One of the flaws of Malick’s film is that the main character goes into introspective mode, thereby depriving us of any real insight in to his thoughts.

Richard Mowe · 3 out of 5
The Austrian Franz Jägerstätter, a conscientious objector, refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II.

(Country: US, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Terrence Malick; Writer: Terrence Malick; Stars: August Diehl, Valerie Pachner, Michael Nyqvist, Matthias Shoenaerts, Jürgen Prochnow, Bruno Ganz)

Full review

Hope Frozen

Documentary about a family whose two-year-old was diagnosed with terminal cancer and their efforts to save her, including a turn to cryogenics after her death.

(Country: Thailand; Year: 2018; Director: Pailin Wedel; Writer: Nina Ijäs, Pailin Wedel)

Luce

Review preview for Luce

There's a rare intelligence to this film, which explores issues around race, wealth, class, gender and what it means to be a real American in a nuanced, multifaceted way.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
A married couple is forced to reckon with their idealised image of their son, adopted from war-torn Eritrea, after an alarming discovery by a devoted high school teacher threatens his status as an all-star student.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Julius Onah; Writer: JC Lee, Julius Onah; Stars: Kelvin Harrison Jr, Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts, Tim Roth, Norbert Leo Butz, Andrea Bang, Faith Logan, Astro, Christopher Mann, Amanda Troya, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Souleymane Sy Savane, Hannah Cabell, Ian Unterman, Noah Gaynor)

Full review

Lynn + Lucy

Review preview for Lynn + Lucy

Scrimshaw captures Lynn's warring emotions perfectly.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
Lynn and Lucy are life-long best friends but after the birth of Lucy's first child, their relationship comes under strain.

(Year: 2019; Director: Fyzal Boulifa; Writer: Fyzal Boulifa, Scott Meek; Stars: Nichola Burley, Jack Shalloo, Christopher Patrick Nolan, Roxanne Scrimshaw, Samson Cox-Vinell, Shaq B. Grant, Mariia Legun, Nichola Burley, Jack Shalloo, Christopher Patrick Nolan, Roxanne Scrimshaw, Samson Cox-Vinell, Shaq B. Grant, Mariia Legun)

Full review See: Nichola Burley and Roxanne Scrimshaw on working together for Lynn + Lucy , Fyzal Boulifa on working-class life and the street casting of Lynn + Lucy

Made In Bangladesh

A seamstress tries to unionise her workplace.

(Country: France, Bangladesh, Denmark, Portugal; Year: 2019; Director: Rubaiyat Hossain; Writer: Philippe Barrière, Rubaiyat Hossain; Stars: Rikita Nandini Shimu, Novera Rahman, Parvin Paru, Mayabi Rahman, Shahana Goswami, Mita Rahman, Momena Chowdhury, Shatabdi Wadud, Joyraaj, Samina Lutfa, Mostafa Monwar, Deepanwita Martin, Wahida Mollick Jolly, Mita Chowdhury, Rikita Nandini Shimu)

Martin Eden

Review preview for Martin Eden

Luca Marinelli is excellent in the lead, balancing intensity with intelligence, convincing at every stage of Martin's journey.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A man struggles to better his circumstances, motivated by his love for a woman from a bourgeois family.

(Country: Italy, France, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Pietro Marcello; Writer: Maurizio Braucci, Pietro Marcello, based on the novel by Jack London; Stars: Luca Marinelli, Carlo Cecchi, Jessica Cressy, Vincenzo Nemolato, Marco Leonardi, Denise Sardisco, Carmen Pommella, Autilia Ranieri, Savino Paparella, Elisabetta Valgoi, Pietro Ragusa, Giustiniano Alpi, Dario Iubatti, Anna Patierno, Vincenza Modica)

Full review See: Pietro Marcello in conversation on his film Martin Eden and Jack London’s novel

Mr Jones

Welsh journalist Gareth Jones experiences at first hand the famine in Ukraine in 1933 – a catastrophe triggered by Stalin’s policies.

(Country: Poland, UK, Ukraine; Year: 2019; Director: Agnieszka Holland; Writer: Andrea Chalupa; Stars: Vanessa Kirby, James Norton, Peter Sarsgaard, Joseph Mawle, Michalina Olszanska, Kenneth Cranham, Celyn Jones, Beata Poźniak, Julian Lewis Jones, Richard Elfyn, Patricia Volny, Krzysztof Pieczynski, Edward Wolstenholme, Billy Holland, Christopher Bloswick)

Noura's Dream (Le Reve De Noura)

While her husband is in jail, Noura meets Lassad. They love each other and want to live together, but when a Jamel gets out of jail and because of a law, Noura just has to get back to normal with him.

(Country: Tunisia, Belgium, France; Year: 2019; Director: Hind Boujeema; Stars: Hind Sabri, Lofti Abdelli, Hakim Boumassoudi, Belhassen Harbaoui, lkbal Harbaoui, Jamel Sassi)

Official Secrets

Review preview for Official Secrets

There’s a refreshing straight-forwardness to Gavin Hood’s Official Secrets.

Jeremy Mathews · 4 out of 5
The true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun, who prior to the 2003 Iraq invasion leaked a top-secret memo.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Gavin Hood; Writer: Sara Bernstein, Gregory Bernstein, Gavin Hood; Stars: Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Ralph Fiennes, Matt Smith, Rhys Ifans, Indira Varma, MyAnna Buring, Jack Farthing, Conleth Hill, Tamsin Greig, Hattie Morahan, Shaun Dooley, Ray Panthaki, Monica Dolan, Kenneth Cranham)

Full review

Debate gala

The Report

Review preview for The Report

The problem with The Report is that despite this ongoing relevance, its powerful subject matter, the capable cast and an impressive script, it never builds up the impetus it ought to have.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
The story of Daniel Jones, lead investigator for the US Senate’s sweeping study into the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program, which was found to be brutal, immoral and ineffective. With the truth at stake, Jones battled tirelessly to make public what many in power sought to keep hidden.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Scott Z Burns; Writer: Scott Z Burns; Stars: Tim Blake Nelson, Adam Driver, Jennifer Morrison, Jon Hamm, Maura Tierney, Michael C Hall, Ted Levine, Annette Bening, Matthew Rhys, Ben McKenzie, Sarah Goldberg, Noah Bean, Carlos Gómez, Daniel London, Linda Powell)

Full review

Rewind

An unflinching personal narrative that reconstructs the unthinkable story of director Sasha Joseph Neulinger’s boyhood and bravely exposes the dynamics of abuse passed through generations.

(Country: US; Year: 2019; Director: Sasha Joseph Neulinger)

Seberg

Political thriller charting how actress Jean Seberg was targeted by the FBI.

(Country: US, UK; Year: 2019; Director: Benedict Andrews; Writer: Joe Shrapnel, Anna Waterhouse; Stars: Margaret Qualley, Kristen Stewart, Zazie Beetz, Anthony Mackie, Vince Vaughn, Jack O'Connell, James Jordan, Stephen Root, Colm Meaney, Jade Pettyjohn, Sean Bolger, Robin Thomas, Victoria Barabas, Kerry Westcott, Ser'Darius Blain)

A Son (Bik Eneich: Un Fils)

Review preview for A Son

There is a lot going on here on both a family and a political level, but Barsaoui sensibly avoids spelling things out letter by letter.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
After a child is shot and needs a transplant, a family secret is exposed.

(Country: Qatar, Lebanon, France, Tunisia; Year: 2019; Director: Mehdi Barsaoui; Writer: Mehdi Barsaoui; Stars: Sami Bouajila, Najla Ben Abdallah)

Full review

Staff Only

Marta is 17, spanish and wants to discover things off the beaten tourist track in Senegal. But a thoughtless act has serious consequences.

(Country: Spain, France; Year: 2019; Director: Neus Ballús; Writer: Neus Ballús, Pau Subirós; Stars: Elena Andrada, Sergi López, Madeleine C. Ndong, Diomaye Augustin Ngom, Ian Samsó, Elena Andrada, Sergi López, Madeleine C. Ndong, Diomaye Augustin Ngom, Ian Samsó)

The Street

Review preview for The Street

Because it is filmed over time and because it is the result of so many conversations, it has depth.

Jane Fae · 4 out of 5
Documentary charting the gentrification of a street in London's Hoxton, where locals face being priced out.

(Country: UK; Year: 2019; Director: Zed Nelson)

Full review

Tell Me Who I Am

Review preview for Tell Me Who I Am

A film about how our identities are shaped and how formative experiences shape our notions of normality.

Sunil Chauhan · 3 out of 5
Story of a twin who lost his memory after an accident and the brother who was his only link to his memories - and who faced ethical choices as a result.

(Year: 2019; Director: Ed Perkins)

Full review

The Valley

Documentary about those in the French Alps giving safe haven to refugees.

(Country: Italy, France; Year: 2019; Director: Nuno Escudeiro; Writer: Nuno Escudeiro, Moritz Bonatti)

Waiting For The Barbarians

Review preview for Waiting For The Barbarians

Rylance is superb throughout in a role perfectly suited to his talents.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A magistrate in a colonial town suffers a crisis of conscience about the regime he works for.

(Country: Italy, US; Year: 2019; Director: Ciro Guerra; Writer: Ciro Guerra, based on the novel by JM Coetzee; Stars: Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Greta Scacchi, Sam Reid, Harry Melling, Mark Rylance, David Dencik, Bill Milner, David Moorst, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Joseph Long, Clem So, Wil Coban, Faical Elkihel, Nayef Rashed)

Full review

Workforce (Mano De Obra)

After his brother is killed on a construction job, his brother and widow fight for justice.

(Country: Mexico; Year: 2019; Director: David Zonana; Writer: David Zonana; Stars: Horacio Celestino, Luis Alberti, Horacio Celestino, Luis Alberti)