341 films, 17 program strands, 28 world premieres... No wonder I never feel like I am able to fit nearly enough into my Melbourne Film Festival schedule. This year again we are spoilt for choice.
As is the way of these things, many of the big ticket films clashed with some of the smaller, more interesting, less-likely-to-find-general-release festival fodder. As hard as I try, I continually struggle with my craving to see the films I've been dying to see sooner (even if it is only a matter of weeks sooner). I just get stars in my eyes and that unfortunately supercedes my taking a punt on something unknown, even if I may not get the chance to see on the big screen once the festival is over.
I never learn. I'm still smarting over missing Museum Hours at last year's festival (and the chances of it getting a limited release at ACMI are fading fast).
I have tried an intervention this year though. After last year, I promised myself that I'd take a trip to Sydney's fest this year to clear out a few of the biggies prior to MIFF. Well, I've done that and managed to take in Brisbane's last (international) film festival as well, so you'd think I'd be set. But no. Still clashes, still films I don't want to miss but probably will...
With all that in mind, I can offer you the following feature recommendations from our northern reaches. Click on through the poster if you want to read what I had to say:
On the documentary front there is an embarrassment of riches in the line-up. I've seen and can thoroughly recommend the following:
1. Mommy
2. Norte, the End of History
3. At Berkley
4. Stray Dogs
5. Force Majeure
6. Concerning Violence
7. Hard to be a God
8. Cut Snake
9. Manakamana
10. Baal
Anyway, after praying to the capricious festival gods to contain their love of clashes, this is what I have come up with:
Thursday 31 July 2014 | It is great to get a locally shot film for the premiere. I can't say I've kept up with the Spierig Brothers' work (and when I say I haven't kept up, I mean I haven't seen either of their previous efforts). That said, I like a well designed time traveller and Predestination looks to be just that. The film picked up positive word on its showing at SXSW so all signs point to a ripper of an opening night. There's free-flowing wine if the film doesn't work out. Last year's opening proved that a bad film doesn't dampen our spirits. Now, if only MIFF has managed to secure an appearance by Ethan Hawke... |
Friday 1 August 2014
6:45 p.m. - Catch Me Daddy
9:15 p.m. - Stations of the Cross 11:30 p.m. - Why Don't You Play In Hell? (pic) | I reckon my first day of the festival proper pretty much sums up my programming for this year:
Rinse and repeat.
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Saturday 2 August 2013 4:00 p.m. - The Fort 6:30 p.m. - Two Days, One Night 9:15 p.m. - White God (pic) 11:30 p.m. - When Animals Dream | Is there a better way than to start the weekend than with a four hour Filipino film nominally based on Dostoyevsky's 'Crime and Punishment'? No, I didn't think so. Hopefully The Fort, an Indian offering from the NextGen program, is a refreshing post-Norte palate cleanser before my double bill of Cannes favourites. Early evening, the new Dardennes brothers film Two Days, One Night promises a stirring performance by Cotillard, though she may be overshadowed by the following film's entire canine cast, which picked up this year's Palm Dog award. White God itself won the Un Certain Regard prize, so I'm sure it is going to be a ripper however good the doggie performances are. After that, more animals with When Animals Dream, a Danish film which ran with a blub invoking Afredson's Let the Right One In. I didn't need to read any more.. |
Sunday 3 August 2014 4:00 p.m. - The Young And Prodigious TS Spivet 6:45 p.m. - Amour Fou (pic) 9:00 p.m. - Concerning Violence | Sunday is another big day for films I missed at interstate fests. Though I hadn't planned to see At Berkeley or Concerning Violence up in Sydney, by the time I left I was wishing I had. At Berkeley I am desperate to see purely off the back of how much I loved Frederick Wiseman's National Gallery, which I did see in Sydney (and is also playing here at MIFF). I'm sure it is going to be something extremely special, four hours worth of extremely special... As for Concerning Violence, I knew absolutely nothing of the film prior to Sydney and it didn't even register with me on the program but Twitter was ablaze with praise as soon as it screened so it was one of the first film's I slotted into my MIFF schedule. In between, the Besson is filler and I'm not holding out much hope for it. The other, Amour Fou, is one I've picked up from Twitter-flurry and it is hotly anticipated by many so I've excitedly hitched myself to that wagon. |
Monday 4 August 2014 9:00 p.m. - Joe Joe is one I've been waiting for ever since Prince Avalanche struck a chord at last year's fest. When I saw David Gordon Green had hooked up with Tye Sheridan from Mud I was sold. Word of Nicolas Cage's solid performance also bodes well. Jacky just looks batshitcrazy! | Tuesday 4 August 2015 9:00 p.m. - Timbuktu (pic) Tuesday's a big bag of unknown. Timbuktu I know little of, except that it pulled in some awards at Cannes. I'm keeping it tucked away as one of the big films I can walk into with over-weighty expectations. The same goes for A Girl at my Door, a film I've slotted in after a brief skim through the session options. It's Korean, which is usually a good sign, and it makes some mention of homophobia so it could deal with queer issues as well. |
Wednesday 6 August 2014 6:30 p.m. - Eastern Boys (pic) 9:00 p.m. - Blind On the upside, a lot of this year's queer films (including Pride) are getting local release. That's the reason I haven't programmed in Ira Sach's Love is Strange. Oh, and I've already caught Tom at the Farm (and seriously considered seeing it again). Anyway, Wednesday brings one of the few queer titles I am seeing, Eastern Boys. I don't know much about it except that it involves rent boys and that it looks rather intense. The same goes for Blind, just without the rent boys. | Thursday 7 August 2014 1:30 p.m. – The Hope Factory 4:00 p.m. - Starred Up (pic) 6:30 p.m. - Manakamana 9:00 p.m. - Han Gong-Ju I'm hoping that I'm free enough at work to be able to duck out for the whole day today so that I can catch a couple of films that are clashing in their evening slots. The most important of these is David Mackenzie's father-son prison drama, Starred Up. I've heard nothing but good things and I'm a big fan of both its young star (who played Cook in TV's 'Skins') and Ben Mendelsohn. The other is Clara And The Secret Of The Bears, though I'm not as sure why I am so desperate to see that one. Bears? Secrets? After all that, in the evening, I've got the third of my slow burners, Manakamana. Apparently it is nothing more than a few hours inside a Nepalese cable car but the word is that it is astonishingly beautiful. I'm super intrigued. |
Friday 8 August 2014 6:30 p.m. - God Help The Girl (pic) 9:15 p.m. - Black Coal, Thin Ice 11:30 p.m. – It Follows | A couple of months ago, this night would have been right up there with my most anticipated of the fest. Since then though, there has been some pretty middling reactions to both early evening films, so despite still kind of looking forward to them so I can make up my own mind, I'm not as pumped as I was. I've been tracking Stuart Murdoch's God Help the Girl since its crowd funding days and I'm impressed by just about everything about it, the music (Belle and Sebastian, so yeah), the cast (with Hannah Murray, another 'Skins' alumnus, and Emily Browning) and the general vibe. I still hold out hope that it'll rock my world... or at least twee indie pop it. Black Coal, Thin Ice I've booked in purely because of its Golden Bear win. I've had good luck with Berlinale winners over the past few years so, again, I'm still somewhat hopeful despite the lacklustre reception in the local press. I probably shouldn't discuss my hopes for It Follows because all I am really hoping for is that I'll be awake enough to see it... |
Saturday 9 August 2014 1:30 p.m. - Happiness 4:00 p.m. - The Distance (pic) 6:30 p.m. - Appropriate Behaviour 9:30 p.m. - Housebound 11.30 p.m. – R100 | If there is a day that is going to throw up surprises from left field, I am reasonably sure it is going to be this Saturday. I've booked in a tear-jerking Japanese animation, a stunningly shot doco from Bhutan and a Lynchian heist flick headed by three telepathic dwarves. Like I say, Saturday could hold more than a few surprises. After that grab bag, Appropriate Behaviour is high on my list of must-sees (probably coming in at number 11). The film impressed a lot of punters in Sydney and its got a queer bent so I'm obligated to attend or they'll rescind my homo-membership. After that, I'm hoping Kiwi haunted house flick, Housebound, makes up for the fact that I'm missing the raved about What We Do in the Shadows, which I've passed over because of its imminent local release. R100, the late night session (if I make it) has also drawn comparisons to David Lynch so it would appear to be the perfect way to close out this day's lunacy. |
Sunday 10 August 2014 11:15 a.m. - German Concentration Camps Factual Survey 1:30 p.m. - The Disappearance Of Eleanor Rigby: Her 4:00 p.m. - The Disappearance Of Eleanor Rigby: Him 6:30 p.m. - Mommy (pic) 9:00 p.m. - Baal | Sunday is a retro-Germanic sandwich with some deliciously dramatic filling. German Concentration Camps Factual Survey makes for a sombre bottom crust and I am sure it is going to be a struggle to get through so early in the morning. Hitchcock contributes but it is more the factual side that I'm interested in. Don't know what to expect but expecting to be disturbed. The other end of the day holds Baal, which I'm pumped to see just for Rainer, Hanna, Irm and the gang. Volker Schlöndorff's film was wheeled out for this year's Berlinale 43 years after its one and only screening. Can't wait. And the guts of the day: two back to back helpings of The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (both Him and Her) and Xavier Dolan's Jury Prize winning Mommy. I REPEAT, XAVIER DOLAN'S GRAND PRIX WINNING MOMMY!!! Easily expected to be my most satisfying day of festing. |
Monday 11 August 2014 6:30 p.m. - Iranien 9:00 p.m. - Night Moves (pic) What I've seen of Kelly Reichardt (and it isn't much) I've enjoyed for its understatedness. I hear Night Moves is slow but packs some powerful ideas into its finale. Iranien looks to be nothing more than powerful ideas. I'm not holding out much hope for cinematic beauty but seeing an atheist bat it out with four Islamic mullahs will definitely hold my attention. | Tuesday 12 August 2014 6:45 p.m. - Of Horses And Men (pic) 9:00 p.m. - Rigor Mortis Following on from that, Rigor Mortis should offer some more traditional WTF!?! cinema. The trailer was one of those that the team previewed at the program launch and it looked pretty special. Hong Kong horror imaginatively realised. Could be a real winner. |
Wednesday 13 August 2014 9:00 p.m. - Jauja Following that up with Vigo Mortensen getting his Danish on and heading out into the Argentinean wilderness in Jauja. I love me some Mortensen and I love me some colonialists getting their comeuppance so here's hoping for satisfaction on both counts. | Thursday 14 August 2014 1:30 p.m. - The Good Life 4:00 p.m. - Our Sunhi 6:30 p.m. - Force Majeure (pic) 9:00 p.m. - 10,000 Km Cannes favourite, Force Majeure, may be the big draw card of the day (along with The Immigrant, one of MIFF's few big Australian premieres) but it is the smaller stuff that has me excited. Now I just have to get out of work so I can see it. The Good Life is one I'm hoping for a lot from. The write up reminds me of Bouli Lanners' Les géants and if this is half as good as that film I'll be happy. Before that I hope to catch another of the NextGen titles, We Are Mari Pepa, which I have on good authority is one of that program stream's best. |
Friday 15 August 2014 6:45 p.m. - Love Hotel 9:15 p.m. - Stray Dogs (pic) 11:30 p.m. – Among the Living | The first slot tonight has changed over and over again. I'm still not settled on it, though Love Hotel is the film I've booked. It's up against two indie comedies, one from Iran and one from the USA, Fish & Cat and Obvious Child. Still making up my mind if anyone wants to help. I'm probably going to have to make my final decision soon because I'm expecting all three to sell out. The film that follows that slot though was never in question. I've been dying to catch Stray Dogs since it premiered at Venice last year and had a couple of critics proclaiming it the year's best. I'm very much looking forward to experiencing it in the festival haze. I can't imagine I'll be up for much after Stray Dogs but I've locked in a hardcore horror film in the late night slot just to test myself. Chances of actually feeling like watching it are slim. |
Saturday 16 August 2014 11:00 a.m. - The Princess Of France 1:30 p.m. - Einstein And Einstein 4:00 p.m. - School of Babel (pic) 6:45 p.m. - The Possibilities Are Endless 9:00 p.m. – The Skeleton Twins | My final Saturday is probably the day that is most open to rescheduling, though not for lack of quality. Last year I promised myself that I'd go to closing night because I was hit by serious FOMO after meeting a heap of great people during the festival and then not getting the chance for one last film related party with them. This year though, one of the film's that I've most wanted to see, James Hall and Edward Lovelace's The Possibilities are Endless clashes with the party. Sadly, film trumps socialising. The day kicks off with another short burst of loosely Shakespearean fare from Matías Piñeiro, this time based on 'Loves Labours Lost'. Between that and Possibilities, I've squeezed in two films that have been recommended to me on and offline though I may catch both at day screenings earlier in the festival if work allows - hence the possible rescheduling. The Skeleton Twins I'm not buzzed for but it is my schedule's one concession to American indie comedy. I usually regret such choices but I am sometimes pleasantly surprised. |
Sunday 17 August 2014 1:30 p.m. - Cut Snake 4:00 p.m. - Hard To Be A God (pic) 7:30 p.m. - The Immigrant | Sunday... My day of big gambles... I've programmed over the surprise screening slots. I'm wary of doing so but it was the only way to squeeze in James Gray's The Immigrant. Last year the late additions didn't inspire me much so I'm game to take the chance. If Mr Turner shows up, there is going to be some serious schedule-wide shuffling. Gambles aside, Sunday's one of the strongest days of my fest. Really looking forward to Tony Ayres Cut Snake (and not just for its poster's bulging retro-ness). What Now? Remind Me promises some enlighteningly emotional musing on mortality from a queer perspective and the aforementioned film from Gray has been amassing praise since its lukewarm reception at last year's Cannes Film Festival. The big ticket item today though is lo-fi Russian sci-fi, Hard to be a God. It's a long one (and will also need to be moved if MIFF does pull out something surprising) but it promises cinematic reinvention so it screams out to be seen. |
First among them is Richard Linklater's rave-recieving Boyhood. Its extra long run time means it blocks out the session following on from it so I've resigned myself to waiting for its theatrical release, which I'd expect will be in September or November. Others with imminent release dates like Loach's Jimmy's Hall, What We Do in the Shadows, Love is Strange and Nick Cave pseudo-documentary 20,000 Days on Earth can also wait. That last one is already sold out anyway.
I'm still trying to find a spot for Virunga and Human Capital. I may be able to do some shifting if I take a third day off work. Same goes for anti-fracking doco The Overnighters, India's caste-criticising Fandry and another Locarno favourite, Backwater.
Things I'm resigned to missing: NZ flick Fantail, Tsai's other film at MIFF, Journey to the West, and lengthy Chinese psych ward documentary 'Til Madness Do Us Part. All look fantastic but I can't find a way to get them in there.
That's me.
What's you?
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