Public booking for the 2017 BFI London Film Festival opens this morning at 10am, with the festival itself kicking off on October 4th with Andy Serkis' directorial debut 'Breathe, starring Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy, and scored by Nitin Sawhney. From the established to the more obscure, we've plucked ten of our most anticipated movies from the LFF's catalogue below.
‘How To Talk To Girls At Parties’
Based on a short story of the same name by fantasy darling Neil Gaiman, this ambitious adaptation stars Alex Sharp as a 1970s teen punk who finds himself thrust into an unlikely extra-terrestrial adventure (and romance) after crashing a party full of aliens. Elle Fanning and a Cockney-accented Nicole Kidman also appear – making this one to watch for the accent alone.
‘Bad Lucky Goat’
Set on the small Caribbean island of Old Providence, this unique coming-of-age comedy (interestingly shot in Creole patois) relates the mishaps and misadventures of two teenage siblings (Honlenny Huffington and Kiara Howard) over 24 hours, as they try to cover their tracks after accidentally running over a goat in their father’s truck. This light-hearted caper promises to bring a healthy dose of sunshine and laughter to the festival line-up.
‘Person To Person’
Fans of the excellent New York-based comedy series 'Broad City' will be pleased to see Abbi Jacobson make the transition to film in this ensemble comedy-drama alongside Michael Cera, again set in New York. Focusing on events across one day, this ‘tribute to a city’ follows the characters’ individual (but loosely linked) storylines as they navigate their personal struggles, big and small.
‘Amant Double’
Adapted from the Joyce Carol Oates novel 'Lives Of The Twins', this psychoanalytical thriller stars Marine Vacth as a former model suffering with undiagnosed stomach pains. All sorts of erotic Freudian shenanigans ensue when, suspecting that the pains might be psychosomatic, the protagonist gets romantically involved with her psychiatrist – and his mysterious twin brother. Francois Ozon's latest sounds tense, intriguing and racy.
‘Abracadabra’
The fantastic Maribel Verdú (who you might recognise from Guillermo del Toro’s 'Pan’s Labyrinth' or Alfonso Cuarón’s 'Y Tu Mamá También') leads this supernatural-tinged, very unorthodox-sounding comedy-drama. Verdú plays housewife Carmen, who – after her husband acts as guinea pig to an amateur hypnotist, with unintended results – must embark on a quest to rescue her husband and restore normality.
‘Mutafukaz’
Described as ‘dystopian hip-hop sci-fi’, this animated film, produced by Japanese Studio 4°C, sounds like a fascinating mash-up of influences and genres. French rapper duo Casseurs Flowters voice the main characters: pizza delivery boy Angelino and his friend Vinz, who live in the cockroach-infested ‘Dark Meat City’. When Angelino bumps into a mysterious, beautiful stranger, he starts to see things – is he having a breakdown, or are aliens invading the city?
‘Pickups’
For anyone already suffering withdrawal symptoms from 'Game Of Thrones', this comedy starring Aidan Gillen (Littlefinger to you) will be a welcome boost. In a somewhat meta twist, Gillen plays a method actor called Aidan, who is dealing with the aftermath of a divorce while preparing for a new role. Potentially quite bleak but apparently very funny.
‘The Cured’
There’s no lack of zombie films in the horror canon, but this new outing from director David Freyne and starring Ellen Page offers an interesting politicised take. Set in a post-zombie virus Europe, it imagines a world where the afflicted can be cured and rehabilitated – but returning to normal life comes with its own challenges in a hostile and fearful society.
‘Ghost Stories’
Written by Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman, the supremely creepy 'Ghost Stories' stage play enjoyed a successful five-year run in London’s theatreland. Now, the team behind the stage show have brought their nightmare-inducing collection of occult tales to the big screen in this adaptation, which stars a host of Brit talent, including Martin Freeman and Paul Whitehouse.
‘My Friend Dahmer’
Just what exactly drives someone to become a serial killer? Is it nature or nurture? These are the morbid (but fascinating) questions that are inevitably asked when such grisly crimes are exposed – and in 'My Friend Dahmer', the focus is on notorious US murderer Jeffrey Dahmer. Delving into Dahmer’s formative high school years, teenage obsessions and emerging psychoses, this film should be a very chilling watch.
Find more info and purchase tickets at bfi.org.uk.
We're a collaborative British music, film and TV blog. "Trying to find the perfect match between pretentious and pop."
