Festival Szn
Once again, it's that time of year: festival season. Cannes and Sundance have come and gone, the Venice Biennale has just wrapped up, the Toronto International Film Festival is soon to follow suit, and the London Film Festival is almost ready to kick off. With so much discourse surrounding all the great films that have premiered, here's a breakdown of some of our most anticipated releases.
Anora
Sean Baker (The Florida Project and Red Rocket) is back with a bang. His latest project, Anora, is one of this year's most talked about films to hit the film festivals, with it being the recipient of the prestigious Palme d'Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, being the first US film to win the award since Terrence Malick's Tree of Life took it home 13 years ago. Mikey Madison is getting her flowers for her role as Anora, a sex worker from Brooklyn whose life gets turned upside down when she marries into a family that turns out to be the opposite of the fairytale she deemed them to be. Wild, provocative and chock full of heart - this will be one that lives up to the hype.
Nightbitch
Amy Adams, the quote "I could crush a walnut with my vagina," and Miley Cyrus' 'Edge of Midnight' in the trailer sounds like the perfect recipe for the time of your life. Nightbitch, based on the highly acclaimed novel by Rachel Yoder and directed by Marielle Heller (The Queen's Gambit, A Beautiful Day in The Neighbourhood), is a darkly comedic and surreal exploration of the relationship between motherhood and identity. Ever felt like your maternal instincts made your primal urges kick into gear? Nightbitch has got you covered. A little mud never hurt anybody.
The Substance
What happens when you try too hard to please everyone else? In the age of bonkers beauty standards (primarily aimed towards women) that dominate like a sickness, Coralie Farget's The Substance is here to hold a mirror up to spectators and critique the society we live in today. With a fully stacked cast led by Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley and Denis Quaid, and walking away with the best screenplay at Cannes, this twisted and funny picture will no doubt shock and intrigue. Unquestionably, these performances are due to garner award nomination buzz come the season.
Blitz
Everyone's favourite four-time Oscar nominee, Saoirse Ronan, is the protagonist in Steve McQueen's (12 Years A Slave, Occupied City) World War II drama. When 9-year-old George (Elliot Heffernan) is sent to the British countryside for his own safety by his mother Rita (Ronan), he is faced with a journey when the time comes to reunite with his family. A poignant exploration of what a mother will do for her child even in the harshest climates, there have been titters of a fifth Oscar nomination for Ronan's performance in Blitz. With it to premiere at BFI's London Film Festival, this is set to make waves.
We Live in Time
Get the tissues ready because John Crowley's (Brooklyn, The Goldfinch) love story, We Live in Time, starring Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, will encourage those tears to start flowing a little too freely. Brought to you by A24, the film follows the past, present and future of Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield) as we see how their chance encounter turns into the love story for the ages. A lot of love and a smattering of heavy emotion make this one that will make January a bit more exciting come its release.
All We Imagine As Light
Payal Kapadia presents us with All We Imagine As Light for lovers of distinct cinematography and complex female relationships depicted on-screen. With her previous projects, A Night of Knowing Nothing (2021) and Afternoon Clouds (2017), being lauded at Cannes at the time of their premiers, it does not come as a surprise to see that Kapadia's second feature was the recipient of the Cannes Grand Prix this year. It follows three women, Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam), Anu (Divya Prabha) and Shiaz (Hridhu Haroon), who all face their own issues but can relate to the baseline of navigating such choppy waters. A beautiful visual and auditory love letter to Mumbai, this stands out in the lineup this year for the best of reasons.
Queer
A period drama starring Daniel Craig and Drew Starky, directed by Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name, Challengers, Bones and All, Suspira) and adapted for screen by Justin Kuritzkes (Challengers). I could leave it there; not much more encouragement is needed to get you out to the cinema to see this following its premiere in Venice. All jokes aside, this seems to have all the qualities of a Guadagnino gem - sex, tension and beautiful cinematography; what's not to love? Add a star-studded cast, with Drew Starkey finally getting his moment to shine and the 1940s period costumes; it ticks all the boxes.
Babygirl
Nicole Kidman has nabbed a Volpi Cup for Best Actress in Venice for her role in Babygirl, the latest feature from Halina Reijn (Bodies Bodies Bodies, Instinct). Also brought to you by fan favourite production and distribution company A24, Kidman plays a powerful CEO who risks it all when she has an affair with her younger intern (Harris Dickinson). The erotic thriller shines best for its performances but will be an exciting ride nonetheless. One not to be watched with the parents, that's for sure.
The Brutalist
The Brutalist is an epic that is not to be missed. Directed by Brady Corbet (The Childhood of a Leader, Mysterious Skin, Vox Lux), the historical drama follows talented Hungarian architect László (Andrien Brody) and his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) who flee post-Europe in 1947 in exchange for America and see their lives change once an affluent patron enters the couple's lives. Capitalism and cultural conflicts are analyzed through their story, with the screenplay co-written by Corbet and Mona Fastvold. The 3-hour 35-minute run time gives Brody the breadth to give the performance of a lifetime and Corbet to prove why he deserved the Best Director award in Venice.
Leah Commandeur is an arts and culture writer, with a focus on film, music and contemporary art.