NewFest — A–Z of films

There’s a knowing humour to it which will resonate with disabled viewers … but other people should see the funny side too, and will, one hopes, not be too nervous to laugh along.

Protagonist Adam (Andrew Scott) lives in a neatly furnished home, no longer feels the need to hide his sexuality, and tells himself he’s fine, but the music says otherwise.

All The Fires is a film built out of contradictions from which meaning gradually emerges.

A semi-autobiographical film with a potent sense of place, Almamula alternates between realism and fantasy, its camerawork reflecting the conflicting ways of thinking at its core.

The film immerses us in the life of the city.

Janis Pugh’s ability to blend crowdpleasing comedy and emotional poignancy should not be underestimated.

Spiky, insightful and joyously unapologetic.

On the surface, this is a comedy of manners taken to extremes. Underneath is a layer of questions about intimacy and why some people feel the need to seek out strangers so that they can be themselves.

There are so many shots through things, boundaries, borders, thresholds, that we are primed for other barriers crossed. Those transgressions are not light ones, but in them is an abject honesty.

An emotionally engaging portrait of the struggles of life on a Native American reservation in Oklahoma

Much messier and more like real life than the average coming-of-age film.

A thorough, well-told tale intertwined with many of the key social and artistic movements of that century – and dotted with its luminaries – Hidden Master brings Lynes back out into the light.

For all the apparent chaos, this is a tightly controlled piece of work which fully delivers on the promise of Stolevski’s earlier films.

Despite the powerful allure of the romance in the film there is a lot more going on. An equal amount of attention is paid to the importance of identity.

This is one of those very Californian tales in which the problems that most people in the world have to deal with simply don’t exist.

The balance held between creepiness and fascination, sheer fun and lingering disturbance is held throughout.

A beautifully constructed piece of work in which every detail serves the whole, putting the tools of the epic at the disposal of a story which is intimate and delicately realised.

It is very much an insider’s perspective and brings to the fore the sort of everyday issues that anyone, anywhere might relate to.

The film undercuts the pop psychology associated with sporting success, clearing the space in which to attempt a more honest account.

Capturing the experience of living in a world where one’s gender doesn’t fit better than almost any other film to date, Preciado’s work is all about claiming space and present day narrative.

It’s difficult to imagine the famously shrewd yet antagonistic Rustin being better cast.

De Filippis understands the value of the small stuff.