“Once there was a Hushpuppy and she lived with her daddy in the Bathtub.” Finally the time has come for everyone to indulge in the sheer delight that is Beasts of the Southern Wild.
But Beasts has some stiff competition this week from an eclectic array of interesting films, including a Chinese war epic starring Adrian Brody and Tim Robbins, a Rolling Stones doco, a British noir thriller with Charlotte Rampling and Gabriel Bryne, a dark and unique retelling of Wuthering Heights, and the life and times of a 108-year old Vanuatu Island chief from Kiwi documentary maker Rachael Wilson.
Decisions, decisions…
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Here are the films opening today:
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BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD……FILM OF THE WEEK
USA | 91 minutes | Drama, Fantasy | Director: Ben Zeitlin (debut feature)
This remarkable coming-of-age story is filmmaking at its finest. The quirky tale of six year-old Hushpuppy searching for her mother after her father falls ill, her Louisiana community is flooded, mythical creatures are unleashed, and the world falls foul of an environmental disaster is only the second film ever to get 10/10 from us. Quvenzhané Wallis’ incredible performance is worth the price of entry alone. Check out our NZIFF review – here.
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YAKEL 3D……HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
New Zealand | 74 minutes | Documentary | Director: Rachael Wilson (debut feature)
This 3D kiwi documentary filmed over three years in a tribal village in Vanuatu tells the remarkable life story of 108-year-old Chief Kowia and ‘explores the fragility of one of the last primitive cultures left today’. Fascinating stuff.
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CROSSFIRE HURRICANE……HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
UK, USA | 110 minutes | Documentary, Music | Director: Brett Morgen (The Kid Stays in the Picture)
A biopic of the Rolling Stones’ career, from their first gig to rock icon status, would be interesting enough…but this doco has been produced by the band themselves and features an arena load of previously unseen interviews, news reels and concert footage.
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I, ANNA…….HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
UK, Germany, France | 93 minutes | Thriller, Drama, Romance | Director: Barnaby Southcome (debut feature)
Charlotte Rampling, Gabriel Bryne and Eddie Marsan add some high-calibre acting to this British thriller about an ethically dubious romance between a police detective and a woman connected to a murder. Charlotte Rampling’s son directs what looks to be a gripping watch.
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WUTHERING HEIGHTS
UK | 128 minutes | Drama, Romance | Director: Andrea Arnold (Fish Tank)
This dark and unique re-imagining of the classic Emily Bronte tale of love and revenge will divide audiences, like it did us at Admit One.
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BACK IN 1942
China | 145 minutes | Drama, War | Director: Xiaogang Feng (Fei Cheng Wu Rao, Fei Cheng Wu Rao 2)
Droughts, plagues of locusts, earthquakes, disease and war. This epic drama about China’s Henan Province during the Second World War, “one of the darkest times in the history of China”, looks intense. But with Adrian Brody and Tim Robbins starring?… Hmmm.
http://youtu.be/7apAhI0X6F0
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HUNKY DORY
UK | 110 minutes | Drama, Music | Director: Marc Evans (My Little Eye, Snow Cake)
On a lighter note we have this cheery British flick about a teacher attempting to stage a sci-fi rock opera version of ‘The Tempest’ at her school. Glee cash-in? Fame for the noughties? Penetrating insight into the difficulties of turning today’s cynical youth on to the joys of the performing arts? You decide.
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Which of these makes your ‘must watch’ list?
