Retrospective 2018- A Year in Film

October

Autumnal Buffet

Image sources: Warner, 20th Century Fox, XYZ & Universal

The start of autumn proper brought a spice to the UK release slates and gave us a tasty mix of films, from musical fare like Bradley Cooper’s Lady Gaga-led directorial debut ‘A Star is Born’ and Queen biopic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody‘, to horror flicks like the Blumhouse sequel/reboot ‘Halloween’ and Panos Cosmatos’ brutal psychedelic revenge thriller ‘Mandy‘, as well as Damien Chazelle’s Neil Armstrong biopic ‘First Man‘ and Matteo Garrone’s Italian vigilante drama ‘Dogman’.

The month’s cinematic variety was rounded off by big studio pictures like much derided comic-book anti-hero blockbuster ‘Venom’ and ensemble crime mystery ‘Bad Times at the El Royale’, as well as Michael Moore’s latest documentary mediation on an ailing America ‘Fahrenheit 11/9’.

London Calling

As per tradition October welcomed the world’s media (including us), the good and the great of global cinema to London town for the 62nd edition of the world’s most accessible major international film festival the BFI London Film Festival, with nearly 250 films from all corners of the globe being showcased during 12 days of film appreciation, as well as the obligatory red carpet galas and celeb-watching of course.

Image Source: Getty Images

After being awarded a BFI Fellowship at the end of 2016’s festival, director Steve McQueen returned to the LFF this year with female empowerment in mind, opening the festival proceedings with his contemporary adaptation of 80s British TV series ‘Widows‘. His tale, co-written with ‘Gone Girl’ author Gillian Flynn, is centred on a group of disparate Chicago wives who form a criminal crew, taking matters into their own hands to protect their families after their husbands pay the ultimate price for a life of crime . . leaving them with debts to dangerous people.

The festival also featured gala screenings for much anticipated films like ‘Suspiria‘, ‘Beautiful Boy‘ and ‘The Favourite‘, among many others, you can check out our full coverage and recap of this year’s festival here, plus all our reviews for the featured films so far here.

Those We Lost

Image source: AMC, Warner, Paramount, Getty Images & MGM

October brought with it the loss of American screen veterans Scott Wilson (76) (Pearl Harbor, The Walking Dead) and Peggy Mccay (90) (Lad: A Dog, Days of Our Lives), plus American 60s & 70s genre favourite Celeste Yarnall (74) (Star Trek, The Velvet Vampire), Oscar-winning Hollywood producer Arnold Kopelson (83) (Platoon, The Fugitive) and veteran American genre actor James Karen (94) (Poltergeist, The Return of the Living Dead).

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