BFI London Film Festival 2022
Monday the 10th
The Son
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The first and only Monday at the festival this year brought a gala screening which saw French playwright-turned-director Florian Zeller adapt another of his plays and reunite with writer Christopher Hampton—after translating Zeller’s stage spiritual trilogy and collaborating on the Oscar-winning ‘The Father’—to create another confronting human drama meditation on dysfunctional family and mental health ‘The Son’.
A contemporary family drama following a successful lawyer cultivating a life with his new family but being drawn back to his ex-wife when their troubled teenage son begins to exhibit strange behaviour, as their struggle to reclaim a son that’s increasingly detached and absent forces them to face unresolved issues between each other, while trying to understand who their boy has become. Zeller was joined by his producers Iain Canning and Joanna Laurie, screenwriter Christopher Hampton, and star Vanessa Kirby, ‘The Son’ is out in selected US cinemas on the 11th of November, with no UK date yet.
The Son trailer (courtesy of Sony)
Saint Omer
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The first day of week two at the LFF this year saw an official competition entry which could have doubled up for the first feature competition, as French documentarian Alice Diop brought along her stars Kayije Kagame and Guslagie Malanda for a screening of her feature debut French contemporary courtroom drama/character portrait with an African perspective ‘Saint Omer’.
The story of a French writer of African descent who is drawn to a different part of the country to follow the trial of a young Senegalese immigrant accused of murdering her own daughter, but her plan to get inspiration for a story with undertones of parabolic myth is soon undermined when the trial and the questions it raises become confronting to her own identity and place in modern France. ‘Saint Omer’ is out on the 23rd of November in France, with no UK date yet.
Saint Omer clip (courtesy TIFF Trailers)
Jeong-sun
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Monday did see some action in the first feature competition when South Korean writer/director Jeong Ji-hye brought along star Kim Yong-joon and DoP Jung Jin-hyeock for a screening of socially reflective meditation on misogyny and online sexual exploitation in Korea ‘Jeong-sun’. A story set against the backdrop of rising digital sex crimes in South Korea and inspired by a real criminal case, following the fate of a confident and frank factory worker whose life is turned upside down when a video of her sexual escapades with a co-worker is leaked online and she must bear the weight of cultural stigma which predictably comes down on her. ‘Jeong-sun’ has no release dates yet.
Jeong-sun trailer (courtesy of BFI)
The Good Nurse
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The pick of the day’s other screenings was provided by Netflix and Danish writer/director Tobias Lindholm in the ‘Thrill’ strand and took the form of a chilling American true crime tale about the banality of evil named ‘The Good Nurse’. A restrained but disturbing dramatisation of the Charles Cullen case following a struggling single mom nurse whose prayers seem to be answered when a polite and helpful new colleague arrives to help with a crippling workload, but when a number of patients die in questionable circumstances this new saint of a nurse might prove to be an unstable angel of death. Lindholm was joined by screenwriter Krysty Wilson-Cairns and his stars Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne, plus one of the subjects of the story Amy Loughren, ‘The Good Nurse’ is available form the 26th of October on Netflix.
The Good Nurse trailer (courtesy of Netflix)
Tuesday the 11th
The Whale
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Tuesday’s big gala affair was one of the most anticipated of the festival this year which brought director Darren Aronofsky back to the LFF, along with his resurgent star Brendan Fraser and screenwriter Samuel D. Hunter (who adapts his own stage play) for the screening of festival season favourite ‘The Whale’.
A heartwrenching yet funny, measured and uncharacteristically hopeful Aronofsky human drama meditation on trauma, grief, abandonment and human connection which unfolds as a chambre piece, following an ailing and obese reclusive English teacher eating himself to an early grave, who takes the painful step of reaching out to the bitter daughter he abandoned when his marriage collapsed in an effort to make amends and change a life before it’s too late. ‘The Whale’ is out on the 9th of December in the US, and at some point in early 2023 in the UK. You can check out our review here.
The Whale at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Triangle of Sadness
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The day’s other big screening finally brought visionary Swedish satirist Ruben Östlund to the LFF—along with his stars Sunnyi Melles, Dolly De Leon, Oliver Ford Davies and Oliver Ford Davies, plus producer Philippe Bober—for a special presentation of his recent Palme d’Or-winning black comedy meditation on class systems and excess ‘Triangle of Sadness’.
An Instagram generation’s ‘Gilligan’s Island’-gone-wrong set in the lap of luxury on a private swanky cruise, where a young model couple find themselves trapped with an array of morally questionable mega-rich passengers when disaster strikes, as cliques and hierarchies are turned upside down when they’re plunged into desert island survival. ‘Triangle of Sadness’ is out now in the US, and on the 28th of October in UK cinemas, you can check out our review here.
Triangle of Sadness trailer (courtesy of Curzon)
Enys Men
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The official competition got plenty of action on Tuesday including a visit from British writer/director Mark Jenkin with the cast of his latest Cornish concoction, hallucinatory period folk horror tale ‘Enys Men’. Set on an isolated island off Cornwall in the early 70s, where an ecologist and volunteer wildlife scientist lives a solitary existence recording the growth of a rare cliff-side flower, only to be plunged into a hazy living nightmare when the plant begins to change. Jenkin was joined by his stars Edward Rowe and Mary Woodvine, plus producer Denzil Monk, ‘Enys Men’ has no release dates yet.
Nezouh
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Tuesday also saw a return to the LFF for Syrian writer/director Soudade Kaadan in official competition mode, following up her 2018 feature debut ‘The Day I Lost My Shadow’ with another wistful look at her scarred country, this time with sardonic and affecting family drama ‘Nezouh’. Set in the devastation of war-torn Damascus and a partially destroyed family apartment, where a father resists the requests of his wife and teenage daughter to leave, forcing them to make the best of their ravaged home and keep the family together despite the odds . . . and make some unexpected friends. Kaadan was joined by her producers Yu-Fai Suen and Amira Kaadan, and star Nizar Alani, ‘Nezouh’ has no confirmed dates yet.
Nezouh clip (courtesy of Busan International Film Festival)
Wednesday the 12th
Empire of Light
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The second Wednesday at the LFF this year brought a heavyweight of British film back to the festival, as writer/director Sam Mendes brought with him his stars Colin Firth, Toby Jones, Tanya Moodie, Olivia Colman, Crystal Clarke, Monica Dolan, Hannah Onslow, Micheal Ward and Tom Brooke, plus producer Pippa Harris for a gala screening of his personal ode to the cinematic experience and period character study reflection on a changing Britain ‘Empire of Light’.
An ensemble character drama set in coastal England of the 1980s, where a melancholic duty manager of a declining cinema and her colleagues make preparations for a local premiere of ‘Chariots of Fire’, while she struggles with demons of the past which resurface after she begins a complex relationship with a young new employee, who must confront the unwelcoming face of a less tolerant society headed for inevitable change. ‘Empire of Light’ is out on the 9th of December in the US, and on the 13th of January 2023 in UK cinemas.
Empire of Light at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Brother
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The official competition brought Canadian cinema back to the festival on Wednesday and Jamaican-Canadian director Clement Virgo in for a maiden trip to the LFF, bringing with him his very personal adaptation of novelist David Chariandy’s 2017 immigrant Toronto tale ‘Brother’.
A time-spanning story set in the Ontario city’s West Indian community, following a man whose diverging relationship with his brother and their hard working mother is brought into the light by a reunion with his childhood sweetheart, as he’s forced to face the difficult experiences of the past to strengthen a bond with his family forged in the fires of their community and its place in modern Canada. Virgo was flanked by his producer Damon D’Oliveira, author David Chariandy and star Marsha Stephanie Blake, ‘Brother’ has no confirmed dates yet.
Brother clip (courtesy of Elevation Pictures)
Women Talking
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Wednesday also welcomed Canadian actress-turned-director Sarah Polley to the LFF, heading a special presentation screening of an all-star female ensemble adaptation of Miriam Toews’s harrowing tale of misogynistic abuse and sisterhood in the midst of obsession and religious fervour ‘Women Talking’.
Inspired by real events and set in an isolated ultraconservative Mennonite colony which shuns technology, following the fate of a group of women who come together to decide their collective fate after seeing the light and discovering that the rape and abuse suffered in sleep by many of them is not the act of a demon punishing sinners, but instead the ill deeds of the men in their community. Polley was joined by her stars Ben Whishaw, Jessie Buckley and Claire Foy, plus producers Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, ‘Women Talking’ is out on the 2nd of December in the US, and on the 10th of February 2023 in the UK.
Introducing Women Talking at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Our Lady of the Chinese Shop (Nossa Senhora da Loja do Chinês)
Image Source: Geração 80
The First Feature Competition brought some African action to the LFF on Wednesday when Angolan cinematographer-turned-director Ery Claver brought British audiences a screening of his contemporary human drama allegory about belief and connection ‘Our Lady of the Chinese Shop’. Set in a neighbourhood of the Angolan capital Luanda and centred on a Chinese shop, which becomes the spiritual focal point of the community when the owner displays a plastic Virgin Mary statue that inspires and brings together all manner of locals, from a mourning mum and an unlikely cult leader to a youngster intent on revenge.‘Our Lady of the Chinese Shop’ has no confirmed dates yet.
Our Lady of the Chinese Shop trailer (courtesy of Geração 80)
Thursday the 13th
The Banshees of Inisherin
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After taking the LFF and the film world by storm in 2017 with his previous film ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’, Martin McDonagh returned to the festival after taking a leaf out of his brother’s book with a quirky but darkening comedy trip to quaint coastal Ireland, treating British audiences to a gala screening of ‘The Banshees of Inisherin’.
A whimsical but brutal black comedy character meditation on a souring friendship, conflict and troubled Irish 20th century history, set on an isolated island in the 1920s off the Irish mainland where two lifelong friends are suddenly torn apart when one shuns the other for an incomprehensible reason, and the other refuses to accept it, leading to a feud which takes a dark turn and pulls in the eccentric locals. McDonagh was joined on the LFF red carpet by his stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, plus producer Graham Broadbent, ‘The Banshees of Inisherin’ is out on the 21st of October. Check out our review here.
The Banshees of Inisherin at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Aftersun
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The pick of the day’s other screenings came in the ‘Love’ strand of the festival, the first of which was a frank and poignant British family drama and moving meditation on mental illness which brought debutante writer/director Charlotte Wells and her stars Frankie Corio and Paul Mescal, plus producer Amy Jackson to the festival for a look at ‘Aftersun’.
A reflective father-daughter holiday tale set in a late 90s summer in Turkey, as a Scottish woman reminisces about her youth and the young dad she once knew, sifting through the conflicting memories of their time together and his attempts to create a perfect vacation under difficult circumstances. ‘Aftersun‘ is out on the 21st of October in the US, and on the 18th of November in UK cinemas.
Aftersun trailer (courtesy of MUBI)
One Fine Morning (Un Beau Matin)
Image Source: MUBI
The other ‘Love’ strand screening of the day brought French cinema and LFF regular writer/director Mia Hansen-Løve back to the festival for a presentation of her poignant romantic family drama ‘One Fine Morning’. A tale of loss and love centred on a French single mother raising a daughter whilst caring for an ailing father, whose non-existent love life is complicated by a reunion with an old friend, with her life destined to be a blend of passion and grief . . . which nevertheless must go on. ‘One Fine Morning’ is out now in France, with no UK date yet.
One Fine Morning trailer (PalaceFilms)
Friday the 14th
Decision to Leave (Heojil Kyolshim)
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The second Friday was a busy day this year throwing up not one but two headline galas, the first of which was a South Korean affair which saw a giant of Korean cinema return to the LFF as writer/director Park Chan-wook was joined on the LFF red carpet by his star Park Hae-il for the screening of his crime drama with mystery and romance undertones ‘Decision to Leave’.
A story revolving around a married detective investigating the death of a man on a mountainside, who fatefully collides with the man’s enigmatic and confounding widow whom he initially suspects but then begins to develop complicated and conflicting feelings for, as a twisting series of events and decisions put them on a seemingly inescapable course which will reveal confronting secrets about each other. ‘Decision to Leave’ is out now in the US, and on the 21st of October in the UK.
Decision to Leave trailer (courtesy of MUBI)
She Said
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The second headline gala of the day was an American affair pulled from the Hollywood headlines which saw director Maria Schrader team up with screenwriter Rebecca Lenkiewicz to adapt New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey’s exposé on Harvey Weinstein’s cases of sexual abuse and misconduct against multiple women, treating British audiences to a screening of ‘She Said’.
A journalistic drama focused on corruption and power systems in showbiz, centred around Kantor and Twohey’s investigative journey starting with digging under long-standing whispers and industry secrets to ending with unearthing an avalanche of abuse which fuelled the #MeToo movement and brought down one of Hollywood’s biggest players . . . among many others. Schrader was joined on the red carpet by Producers Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, Author Rebecca Lenkiewicz, and her star Carey Mulligan, ‘She Said’ is out on the 18th of November in the US, and on the 25th of November in the UK.
She Said trailer (courtesy of Universal Pictures)
Bros
Image Source: Universal Pictures
Friday also proved the BFI’s commitment to telling LGBTQ+ stories of every type when a rare gay rom-com, much less one from a big Hollywood studio made a ‘Love’ strand appearance and got some valuable pre-release promotion with a screening of Universal Pictures and writer/director Nicholas Stoller’s ‘Bros’. A tale of two very different men with a questionable track record of commitment who plunge into a relationship with plenty of stumbling blocks . . . and hilarious consequences in this satirical and in many ways classic comedy/romance for the social media generation. ‘Bros’ is out on the 28th of October.
Bros trailer (courtesy of Universal Pictures)
Lady Chatterley’s Lover
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The pick of the day’s other screenings came in the ‘Love’ strand and saw Netflix take a risqué route by charging French director Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre with the latest adaptation but also reinvention of D. H. Lawrence’s racy 1920s romance novel, as she was joined by her stars Joely Richardson, Emma Corrin, Matthew Duckett and Jack O’Connell, plus producers Laurence Mark and Peter Czernin for a screening of ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’.
A new look at an old story which brings a modernist female-first perspective to the the character of Connie Reid, a young woman at the turn of the century stuck in a privileged but joyless marriage to an English nobleman paralysed from service in World War I, who begins a passionate affair with the local gamekeeper and gets stuck between two life choices . . . all the time risking them both. ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ is available on Netflix from the 2nd of December.
Saturday the 15th
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
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The penultimate day this year signalled the return of a Mexican visionary and some rare stop-motion magic to the festival when writer/director Guillermo del Toro along with his co-director Mark Gustafson brought their vision of a classic fairy tale to the LFF for a world premiere of ‘Pinocchio’. An unsurprisingly darker and more surreal animated take on the classic 19th century tale of an Italian woodcarver who creates a puppet to deal with the painful loss of his son, who then embarks on an adventure of discovery and peril so that he can be magically turned into a real boy, rendered in stunning stop-motion animation but told against the backdrop of oppression under Mussolini’s fascist regime of the 1930s.
Del Toro and Gustafson were joined by their voice stars Christoph Waltz, Cate Blanchett, David Bradley, Gregory Mann and Burn Gorman, ‘Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio’ is available on Netflix from the 9th of December.
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio introduction at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Till
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Saturday’s second big screening was for the Mayor of London’s Gala which brought a true story American period drama with prescient themes to the LFF, as writer/director Chinonye Chukwu was flanked by his stars Jalyn Hall, John Douglas Thompson, Danielle Deadwyler, Tosin Cole and Haley Bennett, plus producers Keith Beauchamp and Barbara Broccoli for the screening of their poignant story of racist systems and evil acts ‘Till’.
A story shining a poignant but blinding cinematic light on the society-changing events surrounding and following the tragic story of Emmett Till, a black teenager visiting Mississippi in the 1950s who was tortured and brutally murdered for committing a deadly sin—offending a white woman. ‘Till’ is out now in the US, and on the 13th of January 2023 in the UK.
Till at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
My Policeman
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The day’s special presentation screening was an Amazon-made homegrown affair which saw British director Michael Grandage team up with screenwriter Ron Nyswaner to adapt the Bethan Roberts English era-spanning, LGBTQ+ love triangle marriage drama novel ‘My Policeman’.
The chronicle of a married couple and an old friend, whose return into the fold plunges them back into their youth in Brighton of the 1950s, when a complex relationship between the husband, his wife, and the man he couldn’t love openly sets in motion events which change the trajectory of their lives. Grandage was joined by his stars Rupert Everett, David Dawson, Emma Corrin, Gina McKee and Linus Roache, ‘My Policeman’ is out on the 4th of November on Amazon Prime Video.
My Policeman trailer (courtesy of Prime Video)
The Stranger
Image Source: Netflix
The pick of Saturday’s other screenings was an Australian proposition in the ‘Thrill’ strand which saw actor-turned-writer/director Thomas M. Wright turn to true-crime as inspiration for his sophomore feature, teaming up with Netflix to treat British audiences to a screening of dark and tense Aussie crime drama ‘The Stranger’.
A moody and disturbing tale inspired the by real life disappearance of teenager Daniel Morcombe in 2003, centred around a jumpy ex-con and career criminal who seemingly finds a golden opportunity to escape a dark past when he meets a stoic crime boss looking to hire, only to be drawn deeper into a web of crime which leads to a reckoning that’s a long time coming. ‘The Stranger’ is available on Netflix from the 19th of October.
The Stranger trailer (courtesy of Netflix)
Sunday the 16th
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
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The honour of closing the festival this year fell to Netflix and American writer/director Rian Johnson, whose transformation into a 21st century Agatha Christie continues—as do the exploits of his dashing detective creation ‘Benoit Blanc’—as a cavalcade of his stars including Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Leslie Odom Jr., Janelle Monáe, Daniel Craig, Rian Johnson, Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista and Kathryn Hahn, plus producer Ram Bergman gathered on the LFF red carpet for the Closing Night Gala screening of ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’.
A twisting whodunnit murder-mystery follow-up which takes Blanc to a luxurious coastal getaway and the Greek private island home of a tech billionaire, where a seemingly friendly gathering of disparate characters with co-dependent ties to their host soon turns into a murder scene when one of them turns up dead and everyone is a suspect, with the legendary southern sleuth soon jumping on the case—in this socially-conscious comedy crime-mystery multi-pronged attack on the powerful and unaccountable in today’s rather ridiculous society. ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ is available on Netflix from the 23rd of December, and is out in UK and US cinemas for a limited time on the 23rd of November. You can see our review here.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery at the LFF (courtesy of Netflix)
Awards
The LFF’s awards—something which unlike other festivals has never been a major part of the event—was once again a largely virtual affair and saw Marie Kreutzer’s ‘Corsage’ take the official competition’s ‘Best Film’ award. You can check out all the winners and the ceremony below.
The 66th BFI London Film Festival 2022 LFF Award Winners
Official Competition (Best Film):
‘Corsage’ by Marie Kreutzer
Documentary Competition (Grierson Award):
‘All That Breathes’ by Shaunak Sen
First Feature Competition (Sutherland Award):
‘1976’ by Manuela Martelli
Short Film Competition (Short Film Award):
‘I Have No Legs, and I Must Run’ by Yue Li
Best XR/Immersive Art:
‘As Mine Exactly’ by Charlie Shackleton
Audience Award (Feature):
‘Blue Bag Life’ by Lisa Selby, Rebecca Hirsch Lloyd-Evans and Alex Fry
Audience Award (Short):
‘Drop Out’ by Ade Femzo
LFF Awards Ceremony 2022 (courtesy of BFI)
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