Four new feature films MANHUNT, CUSTODY, NICO, 1988, NO STONE UNTURNED and a series of Experimenta events have been added to the lineup for the 61st BFI London Film Festival.
MANHUNT
Strand: Thrill
Dir: John Woo
MANHUNT (ZHUIBU), represents John Woo’s thrilling return to his cinematic roots, with intrepid cops, flying glass, mid-air shootouts in balletic slo-mo. Here the Hong Kong maestro moves police thriller operations to Japan, where lawyer Du Qiu (Zhang Hanyu) finds himself a murder suspect on the run from tenacious cop Yamura (Masaharu Fukuyama). A hugely enjoyable full-tilt action romp which is both a dazzling assault on the senses and strong on humor, MANHUNT sees Woo at the top of his game.
NO STONE UNTURNED
Strand: Debate
Dir/Scr: Alex Gibney.
NO STONE UNTURNED joins the Debate Strand, receiving its International Premiere at the LFF. Academy-Award winning documentarian Alex Gibney reopens the case of the unresolved 1994 Loughinisland massacre in Northern Ireland in this gripping non-fiction murder mystery. NO STONE UNTURNED is a suspenseful and profoundly effective true crime investigation that uncovers a shocking case of collusion and cover-up. Gibney’s Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God won the LFF’s Grierson Award for Best Documentary in 2012.
CUSTODY
Strand: Debate
Dir/Scr: Xavier Legrand
CUSTODY (Jusqu’à la garde), winner of the Best Director and Best First Feature prizes at the Venice Film Festival, is a taut, tense drama that confirms the promise of director Xavier Legrand’s Oscarnominated short film. Myriam (Léa Drucker) has recently left husband Antoine (Denis Ménochet) and doesn’t want her youngest, Julien, to see a father she claims is violent. But the judge rules otherwise, and the boy becomes a pawn in a bitter parental conflict. Displaying psychological precision, skilful building of suspense and an eloquent use of ambiguity, CUSTODY is frighteningly credible.
NICO, 1988
Strand: Create
Dir/Scr: Susanna Nicchiarelli.
The Festival’s Create strand grows in strength in its inaugural year with the addition of NICO, 1988, Susanna Nicchiarelli’s fascinating biopic of the iconic performer Nico. Winner of the Best Film in Orizzonti at Venice Film Festival, Susanna Nicchiarelli tells the story of the final two years in the often tragic life of the frustrated artist, exploring the destructive sides of Nico’s personality – her heroin addiction, her combative nature, her swollen ego – all brought vividly to life by Trine Dyrholm (who also recorded her own vocals for the film).
EXPERIMENTA EVENTS
A series of Artists’ Moving Image professional development and public events are announced as part of Experimenta, in partnership with LUX and supported by Arts Council England. The Experimenta events programme will open with a Symposium organised in partnership with British Council and Centre for Research and Education in Arts and Media, University of Westminster, which will consider contemporary and historical artists’ film in Asia.
Experimenta Salons offer audiences a chance to explore themes and concerns across different films in a relaxed and engaged atmosphere, and participating artists include Filipa César (SPELL REEL) and Narimane Mari (LE FORT DES FOUS), Anne-Marie Copestake (A BLEMISHED CODE) and Shambhavi Kaul (HIJACKED), Chen Zhou (LIFE IMITATION) and Andrea Luka Zimmerman (ERASE AND FORGET).
For the Experimenta Pitch the Festival, in partnership with Film London Artists’ Moving Image Network (FLAMIN), offers 10 artist-filmmakers a chance to win the Experimenta Pitch Award of £1000 towards development costs for a new project. Each participant will present a short pitch to an international panel of leading artists’ film producers.
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