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Frank Langella as Richard Nixon and Michael Sheen as David Frost in Frost/Nixon which opens the 52nd London Film Festival on October 15 |
Pick of the Indies
The London Film Festival
LONDON’s own film festival may not quite have the cachet of Rome, Venice or San Sebastian, but this month’s offering has a whopper of a programme for cinema buffs.
It kicks off across the capital on October 15, includes UK premieres, some wacky indie stuff and has a great selection of treats from screens around the world.
The world premiere of Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon gets it started. It stars Frank Langella as the disgraced former President Richard Nixon and Michael Sheen as TV interviewer David Frost, who wrangled an interview with the impeached prez in 1977.
And with the American elections creeping closer, another film with a US political twist also gets its first screening. Alex Gibney’s documentary Gonzo on the life and work of Hunter S Thompson is bound to be enthralling. Thompson’s political writing is often overlooked. His Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail is a remarkable piece of reportage, following the caravan of characters that made the 1972 presidential election. Gonzo is not on general release until December, so this is our chance to grab a preview. Gibney wrote Taxi To The Dark Side, the superb film about Afghan prisoners and US brutality.
Other treats include the premiere of Danny Boyle’s latest offering, Slumdog Millionaire, which closes the fortnight. Nick Moran’s Telstar, Eran Creevy’s Shifty, and Gerald McMorrow’s Franklyn also feature, while new director on the block Steve McQueen offers his film, Hunger.
And, as well as Daniel Craig’s latest outing as Bond in Quantum of Solace, there are also 12 international premieres, including Spike Lee’s Miracle At St Anna. The story focuses on the all-black Buffalo Soldiers 92nd division which was stationed in Tuscany in 1944. Lee blends political comment and characterisation with strong action sequences.
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