BFI London Film Festival 2024
Monday the 14th
Hard Truths
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Week two at the festival this year kicked off with the return of a homegrown film legend when veteran filmmaker and LFF regular Mike Leigh graced the Leicester Square red carpet, flanked by his stars Sophia Brown, Samantha Spiro, Jo Martin, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Michele Austin, David Webber, Ani Nelson, Jonathan Livingstone and Elliot Edusah for the BFI Patrons’ Gala UK premiere of their droll but touching modern portrait of UK family life ‘Hard Truths’.
A modern life character dramedy centred around an ornery and misanthropic matriarch struggling with her anxieties about the world while her family walks on eggshells around her, as she’s destined to clash with her very different sister over a mother’s day weekend, an uncomfortable coming to a head which will turn the family upside down but also provide a chance to vent and bring them closer together. ‘Hard Truths’ is out on the 31st of January 2025 in the UK and on the 10th in selected US cinemas.
Hard Truths trailer (courtesy of StudiocanalUK)
Nickel Boys
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Monday’s special presentation screenings also brought more American cinema to the LFF and Pulitzer Prize-winning literature to the big screen, as writer/director RaMell Ross brought his stars Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor for the UK premiere of ‘Nickel Boys’.
A fictional era-jumping character prison drama set in Florida’s fictional Nickel Academy in the 1960s—inspired by the very real history of the state’s notorious Dozier School juvenile reform institution—where a teenager is sent for a crime he didn’t commit, only for him to later reflect on the formative friendship made there and the transformative legacy of the difficult time served, when the institution’s bleak history of mistreatment and abuse finally comes to light decades later. ‘Nickel Boys’ is out on the 13th of December in the US and on the 3rd of January 2025 in the UK.
Nickel Boys trailer (courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios )
The Seed of the Sacred Fig
Image Source: Lionsgate
The day’s other special presentation screening brought Iranian cinema and writer/director Mohammad Rasoulof—a bold and defiant filmmaker with personal experience of Iran’s oppressive theocratic regime—to the LFF for the UK premiere of his political and family drama meditation on those exact themes ‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’. The tale of a ruthless investigator for the Islamic Revolutionary Court, whose ambitions to climb the government ladder and become a judge are complicated when his daughters begin to reject his authority and get involved in the “Women, Life, Freedom” uprisings of 2022. ‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’ is out on the 27th of November in the US, and on the 7th of February 2025 in the UK.
The Seed of the Sacred Fig trailer (courtesy of Films Boutique)
The Assessment
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The pick of Monday’s other thematic screenings came in the ‘Journey’ strand and in the form of a feature directorial debut from successful music video director Fleur Fortuné who brought the UK premiere of her sci-fi chamber drama ‘The Assessment’. A dystopian near future tale set in an oppressive and overpopulated world, where two scientists looking to become parents must undergo the intrusive government assessment that will decide whether they can have a child, as their enigmatic assessor subjects them to a week-long process which test their relationship and their sanity to breaking point. ‘The Assessment’ has no confirmed UK or US dates yet.
Tuesday the 15th
The Apprentice
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Tuesday at the LFF brought celebrity culture and current American politics to the forefront, as well as Ali Abbasi back to the festival as the Iranian-Danish director took a daring cinematic step into the US elections with his portrait of a past and potentially future president with the headline gala screening of ‘The Apprentice’.
A pulsating period biopic, meditation on American capitalism and portrait of a magnate turned cult figure and unlikely world leader, charting the rise of a young Donald Trump through 1970s and ’80s New York real estate, as his personality and life ethos is shaped by his close relationship with a questionable mentor—brash US government lawyer turned New York political “fixer” and attorney to the mob Roy Cohn. Abbasi was joined on the red carpet by his stars Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong, ‘The Apprentice’ is out now in the US and UK, check out our review here.
The Apprentice trailer (courtesy of StudioCanal)
Joy
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The day’s other big screening brought a domestic period tale with global implications to the big screen, and British TV director Ben Taylor to the LFF for his feature debut, as he gathered his stars James Norton, Thomasin McKenzie and Bill Nighy for the Cunard Gala global premiere of their true story IVF medical drama and character piece ‘Joy’.
A biographical drama chronicling the work of a young embryology nurse, an ambitious scientist, and a veteran surgeon, who despite vehement opposition by the Church, the media and political classes, and the medical establishment in the UK of the late 1960s and early 70s, defy the odds to pioneer in vitro egg fertilisation and change the world, creating the first “test tube baby” and uplifting lives forever in this dramatisation of the birth of IVF. ‘Joy’ is out in select UK cinemas on the 15th of November, and streams on Netflix from the 22nd of November.
Joy trailer (courtesy of Netflix)
A Nice Indian Boy
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The special presentation screening of the day provided a US-Canadian LGBTQ+ romantic dramedy with plenty of Indian spice for the LFF faithful, as director Roshan Sethi returned to the festival accompanied by his stars Karan Soni and Jonathan Groff plus producer Charlie McSpadden for the UK premiere of ‘A Nice Indian Boy’. An adaptation of the Madhuri Shekar stage-play and inspired by other Bollywood classics, it offers a fresh perspective on the classic meet-the-parents rom-com and all its tropes by following the fate of Naveen, a young Indian-American who falls for caucasian Jay and becomes quickly engaged, hoping for a a life together and perhaps a big traditional Indian wedding—the only problem is, his family don’t know . . . yet. ‘A Nice Indian Boy’ has no confirmed dates yet.
The Balconettes (Les Femmes au Balcon)
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The pick of the day’s other screenings came in the ‘Cult’ strand and brought both darkly comedic female-centric French cinema and actress-turned-director Noémie Merlant back to the festival, pulling triple duty as writer/director/co-star for her sophomore feature as she was joined by her co-star Sanda Codreanu and producer Pierre Guyard for the UK premiere of ‘The Balconettes’. A black comedy with horror overtones set in Marseille in the grip of a summer heatwave, where a trio of friends and flatmates have their lives turned upside down when they’re attacked by an abusive neighbour, and their striking self-defence leads them on an odyssey of self-preservation which continues to haunt them . . . quite literally. ‘The Balconettes’ is out on the 11th of December in France, with no UK dates yet.
Wednesday the 16th
Nightbitch
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The second Wednesday the the festival this year culminated in a big headline gala which brought American cinema and one of its more promising new voices back to the LFF, as actress-turned-filmmaker Marielle Heller was joined by her star/co-producer Amy Adams plus producers Stacy O’Neil and Anne Carey for the UK premiere of their surrealist suburban black dramedy meditation on motherhood and its unspoken dark spots ‘Nightbitch’.
An adaptation of Rachel Yoder’s dark yet droll magical-realist novel set in contemporary American suburbia, revolving around a stay-at-home mother struggling with the pressures of motherhood and its effect on her life and career, who then connects with a more primal instinct and transforms in the most unexpected way to deal with everything. ‘Nightbitch’ is out on the 6th of December in the US.
Nightbitch trailer (courtesy of Searchlight Pictures)
Happyend
Image Source: Modern Films
The first feature competition welcomed Japanese cinema and one of its freshest exponents to the LFF on Wednesday, when video music director and documentarian Neo Sora brought his dystopian but plausible near-future feature debut meditation on generational pessimism and nostalgia ‘Happyend’ to the festival for an in-competition UK premiere.
An allegorical character drama set in a Tokyo of the not-too-distant future under political turmoil and a government tightening its grip on society, it follows a raucous group of teenagers bonded over shenanigans and a shared love of music of the past, plus a distaste for the present and lack of hope for the future, whose friendships are tested to breaking point by the threat of a looming earthquake and a prank pulled by two of them on their school principal, as the heavy-handed surveillance response takes them aback. ‘Happyend’ is out in Japan, with no UK or US dates yet.
Happyend trailer (courtesy of MAGNIFY)
2073
Image Source: NEON
The pick of Wednesday’s thematic strand screenings came in the ‘Debate’ strand and brought British director and acclaimed documentarian Asif Kapadia back to the LFF in genre-blending mode to give the festival faithful a look at his sobering and moody meditation on a world in turmoil and where its headed with the UK premiere of ‘2073’.
Mixing newsreel footage and interview style documentary with drama/thriller fiction, and bridging the chaos of the present day and a dystopian totalitarian near-future where multiple crises have disastrously converged, it chronicles the decay of democracy and objective truth and rise of authoritarianism to give us a visual tapestry warning of where humanity might be heading if we’re not careful. ‘2073’ has no confirmed dates yet.
2073 trailer (courtesy of Film4)
Three Kilometres to the End of the World (Trei Kilometri Până La Capătul Lumii)
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The day’s other standout screening came in the ‘Debate’ strand and brought Romanian cinema back to the festival as actor turned filmmaker Emanuel Parvu made his LFF directorial debut and brought along his co-writer Miruna Berescu for the screening of their contemporary trauma drama ‘Three Kilometres to the End of the World’. Set in a conservative rural Romanian community where a teenager’s coming-of-age is plunged into turmoil by his sexuality and a fateful night when he is brutally attacked on the street for it, putting his relationship with his parents at risk while the tranquillity of the local community is disrupted. ‘Three Kilometres to the End of the World’ is out now in Romania, with no UK date yet.
Three Kilometres to the End of the World trailer (courtesy of BFI)
Thursday the 17th
We Live in Time
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The second Thursday at the LFF this year culminated in the traditional Mayor of London’s Gala screening, which this time brought Irish director John Crowley back to the festival, reunited with his 2007 ‘Boy A’ star Andrew Garfield and joined by producers Adam Ackland, Leah Clarke and Guy Heeley for the UK premiere of their frank and lyrical contemporary British romance and family drama ‘We Live in Time’.
The touching and quirky yet relatable tale of a youngish English couple brought together by a chance collision who embark on a heartwarming and heartbreaking everyday love odyssey building a life together and overcoming the obstacles it throws at them, whilst facing the moral and existential quandaries of marriage and self-realisation as they reflect on their past and shape a future for their young daughter. ‘We Live in Time’ is out now in the US, and on the 1st of January 2025 in the UK.
Andrew Garfield on We Live in Time at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Queer
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The pick of the day’s other screenings brought Italian expert of adaptations and LFF regular Luca Guadagnino back to the festival, this time accompanied by his co-star Drew Starkey plus producer Lorenzo Mieli and costume designer J.W. Anderson, but with his star Daniel Craig absent for the special presentation screening and UK premiere of their adaptation of William S. Burroughs’s semi-autobiographical short novel and stylishly raunchy period LGBTQ+ romance ‘Queer’.
A provocative, explicit and surrealist drama set in Mexico City of the 1940s and revolving around troubled outcast American expat William Lee, who spends his time indulging in the city’s nightlife with a cavalcade of colourful characters only to become infatuated and obsessed with an enigmatic younger American serviceman, as they indulge in their carnal pleasures and embark on a South American jungle odyssey in search of a plant with the promise of a psychological purge and an existentialist re-awakening. ‘Queer’ is out on the 27th of November in the US, and on the 13th of December in UK cinemas.
Luca Guadagnino on Daniel Craig and Queer at the LFF (courtesy of BFI)
Vermiglio
Image Source: Modern Films
Thursday’s official competition schedule turned out to be an Italian cinema showcase which brought writer/director Maura Delpero back to the LFF for the UK premiere of her rural Italian World Warr II-set romance and family drama tragedy ‘Vermiglio’.
A period chronicle of a family’s downfall in a picturesque and remote mountain village at the end of the Second World War, after an army deserter’s arrival disrupts the whole community when a teacher’s daughter falls in love with him, only for him to bring suspicion and tragedy for the family after a hopeful start. ‘Vermiglio’ has no confirmed dates yet.
Vermiglio trailer (courtesy of Film Fest Gent)
Thank You for Banking With Us!
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The official competition also managed to shine a light on Arabic cinema on Thursday when writer/director Laila Abbas was accompanied by her stars Adam Khattar, Yasmine Al Massri and Ashraf Barhoum for the world premiere of her daring meditation on Islamic culture and its engrained patriarchal systems ‘Thank You for Banking With Us!’. The humour-filled drama tale of two sisters in the Islamic world who unite in a struggle against Sharia Law and a system stacked against them, after their recently passed father leaves them an inheritance tied up in the bank, before their estranged undeserving brother can swoop in and take his unfair share. ‘Thank You for Banking With Us!’ has no confirmed dates yet.
Friday the 18th
Maria
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The final Friday at the LFF this year brought Hollywood star power to the capital and a visionary director back to the festival when Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín was joined by his star Angelina Jolie and her co-stars Rebecka Johnston, Aggelina Papadopoulou and Alba Rohrwacher for his latest artistically liberated biographical portrait of the human behind the iconic public figure, bringing the Headline Gala screening of his creative Maria Callas biopic ‘Maria’.
A look behind the public masks of the prima donna American-born Greek operatic soprano and one of the most acclaimed singers of the 20th century, focused on her final days in 1970s Paris as she recounts her life whilst struggling with her health and a hallucinatory pill addiction, reflecting on her loves and losses, and on an incredible career and the pain hidden beneath. ‘Maria’ is out in selected US cinemas on the 27th of November, before streaming on Netflix from the 11th of December, and is out in UK cinemas on the 10th of January 2025.
Angelina Jolie on Maria at the LFF (courtesy of StudioCanal)
Bring Them Down
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Friday’s official competition slate was an Anglo-Irish affair which brought UK camera camera operator turned debutant director Chris Andrews to the LFF for the UK premiere of his tense modern rural family drama mediation on generational conflict and resentment ‘Bring Them Down’. An Irish family farming saga revolving around a shepherd forced to take over the family business when their patriarch’s health begins to fail, pulling him into a legacy of conflict with a rival family as he struggles to end the toxic cycle, only to be drawn into tragedy nevertheless. Andrews was joined on the LFF red carpet by his stars Colm Meaney, Susan Lynch, Nora Jane Noone and Aaron Heffernan, ‘Bring Them Down’ has no confirmed dates yet.
All We Imagine As Light
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Indian cinema also got its time in the London spotlight on Friday when writer/director Payal Kapadia made both her feature drama and LFF debut, represented by her star Kani Kusruti for a special presentation screening of their contemporary drama meditation on working-class life in big city India ‘All We Imagine as Light’. The story of three Mumbai hospital workers and one in particular, whose life is upended by a gift from her estranged husband, and by her younger roommate’s determination to find a place of her own to indulge in her desires with her own boyfriend. ‘All We Imagine as Light’ is out on the 15th of November in the US, and on the 29th of November in the UK.
All We Imagine As Light trailer (courtesy of LUXBOX)
When Fall is Coming (Quand Vient L’automne)
Image Source: Playtime
The pick of the day’s other screenings came in the ‘Love’ strand and was a French cinema affair which saw daring versatile filmmaker and LFF regular François Ozon return to the festival in more traditional yet still inventive character drama mode for the UK premiere of his contemporary French generational family drama study ‘When Fall is Coming’. The story of an elderly retiree enjoying the country life alongside her good friend until a mistake involving her estranged daughter and the grandson she expects ruins her intentions, only for her friend’s own grandson to arrive recently released from prison and give them new purpose, and undo their best laid plans. ‘When Fall Is Coming’ is out now in France, with no UK or US dates yet.
When Fall is Coming trailer (courtesy of Diaphana Distribution)
Saturday the 19th
The Room Next Door
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The penultimate day this year brought not only a long overdue LFF debut but also an English-language feature first for a Spanish cinema legend, as Pedro Almodóvar finally graced the festival red carpet accompanied by one of his stars Julianne Moore for the Headline Gala screening of his adaptation of Sigrid Nunez’s novel ‘What Are You Going Through’, a moving study on dealing with death and character meditation on connecting and reflecting over trauma and regret ‘The Room Next Door’.
The tale of a best-selling novelist and war correspondent, two estranged long-time friends who reunite over a serious cancer diagnosis for one of them, as they bond over recounted life experiences and strengthen a rekindled friendship over the highly personal and unthinkable request from a dying woman. ‘The Room Next Door’ is out on the 25th of October in the UK, and on the 20th of December in the US.
The Room Next Door trailer (courtesy of Warner Bros.)
Bird
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
Saturday’s second big Headline Gala was a domestic affair which brought Kentish writer/director and LFF regular Andrea Arnold back to the festival, flanked by her stars James Nelson-Joyce, Frankie Box, Jason Buda and Nykiya Adams for the UK premiere of her working-class coming-of-age drama meditation on identity and society’s marginalised ‘Bird’.
A contemporary British tale set in run down working-class modern day Kent, where a tween struggles to balance an adolescence alongside her drug dealer scoundrel young father and hard-headed older step-brother, with her younger siblings under the roof of their troubled mother and her abusive new lover across town, only to have her mind and little world expanded by the arrival of an enigmatic free-spirited stranger in town searching for his own roots . . . and with a surreal secret. ‘Bird’ is out on the 8th of November in UK and US cinemas.
Bird trailer (courtesy of MUBI)
That Christmas
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The day’s other gala screening brought the relative novelty of homegrown animated film to the LFF, directed by experienced Swiss DreamWorks animator-turned-director Simon Otto (Kung Fu Panda, How to Train Your Dragon) and co-written by Richard Curtis (who adapts his own trilogy of Christmas picture book stories), as they were joined on the red carpet by their voice stars Rhys Darby and Fiona Shaw for the UK premiere of their heartwarming British festive tale ‘That Christmas’.
An East England Christmas chronicle set on the Suffolk coast, where young Danny struggles to get into the Yuletide spirit taking over his new small town whilst trying to adjust to a new life where mum works long and hard at the hospital, while his new school experience under the thumb of a strict teacher is proving tricky, only for the town’s Christmas plans to be threatened by a series of unfortunate events, and for Danny be plunged in the middle of the miracle which might save it all. ‘That Christmas’ streams on Netflix from the 4th of December.
The Extraordinary Miss Flower
Image Source: Distiller
The LFF’s official competition also got some play on the final Saturday and brought creative musicality to the proceedings, as visual artists turned filmmakers Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard followed up their emtricitabine musical artist portraits of Nick Cave with 2014’s ‘20,000 Days on Earth’ and Gil Scott-Heron in 2015’s ‘Who Is Gil Scott-Heron?’ by focusing their lens on an Icelandic singer-songwriter and her unlikely inspiration for an album, turning it into an intoxicating biographical pot-pourri of sight & sound dubbed ‘The Extraordinary Miss Flower’.
A hybrid film featuring musical performances, dramatisations and readings by famous figures, and a kaleidoscope of visual and audial elements which bring to the life experiences—both hypothetical and real—of the late Geraldine Flower, the late mother of a friend of Icelandic musician Emilíana Torrini, who was inspired to write an album after the discovery of a cache of lost letters sent to her late muse in the 60s and 70s, which when read hinted at a secret and adventurous life full of possibilities. ‘The Extraordinary Miss Flower’ has no confirmed dates yet.
The Extraordinary Miss Flower trailer (courtesy of BFI)
Sunday the 20th
Piece by Piece
Image Source: Getty Images BFI
The final day at this year’s LFF and the honour of closing the festival fell to animated cinema and American modern music and culture star Pharrell Williams, as he teamed up with documentarian Morgan Neville to give us a Closing Night Gala screening of their unconventional music biography and ode to creativity ‘Piece by Piece’.
A creative animation portrait of the life & times of uber producer and superstar experimental artist Pharrell Williams, brought to life via the magic of the LEGO big screen treatment, as his rise through the various corners of the music industry is charted through the voices of the people who helped to shape him, all illuminated by the magical animation of the LEGO universe where real world limitations are removed and imagination runs wild. Williams and Neville were joined on the red carpet by producers Jill Wilfert, Caitrin Rogers and Brent Palmer, ‘Piece by Piece’ is out now in the US, and on the 8th of November in the UK.
Piece by Piece trailer (courtesy of BFI)
Awards
This year’s LFF’s awards—something which unlike other festivals has always been a small part of the overall event—saw Adam Elliot’s ‘Memoir of a Snail’ take the official competition’s ‘Best Film’ award. You can check out all the winners below.
The 68th BFI London Film Festival 2024 LFF Award Winners
Official Competition (Best Film):
‘Memoir of a Snail’ by Adam Elliot
Documentary Competition (Grierson Award):
‘Mother Vera’ by Cécile Embleton and Alys Tomlinson
First Feature Competition (Sutherland Award):
‘On Falling’ by Laura Carreira
Short Film Competition (Short Film Award):
‘Vibrations from Gaza’ by Rehab Nazzal
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