Category Film Festivals

Denis Villeneuve delivers his biggest and best work to date with ARRIVAL

Following the superior SICARIO (2015), Denis Villeneuve returns to the big screen with his latest feature film ARRIVAL, marking his biggest and best work to date.

Based on Ted Chiang’s short story STORIES OF YOUR LIFE, ARRIVAL tells the story of linguistics professor Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) who is recruited by the US military led by Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) to assist in translating alien communications...

Walt Disney Pictures brings together an extraordinary cast for QUEEN OF KATWE, a remarkable true story about one girl’s grace and steely determination to create a better life for herself and her family.

Based on Tim Crothers’ book THE QUEEN OF KATWE: ONE GIRL’S TRIUMPHANT PATH TO BECOMING A CHESS CHAMPION and inspired by a true story, QUEEN OF KATWE tells the story of Phiona Mutesi, an illiterate girl from Uganda who pursues her dream of becoming a chess champion.

The story begins in 2007 w...

Entertaining and likeable, TROLLS is a fairytale explosion of glitter, colour and trippy beats

Following the mediocre performance of KUNG FU PANDA 3, HOME and PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR (especially when you compare it to the box office success of Disney’s FROZEN or Universal’s DESPICABLE ME), DreamWorks Animation take a big-screen gamble on the candy coloured, crazy hair toy sensation of the 1960s in their latest family-friendly animated comedy.

TROLLS follows the story of two shock-headed tro...

Raw, emotional and utterly heart-breaking, MANCHESTER BY THE SEA is a devastating exploration of grief and redemption

Kenneth Lonergan’s highly-anticipated third film MANCHESTER BY THE SEA chronicles the effects of loss and grief in this devastating drama about one man’s painful return to his hometown.

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA follows the story of Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck), an anti-social outcast who works as a janitor in Boston...

Damien Chazelle breathes new life into the Hollywood musical with the bright and playful LA LA LAND

At the tender age of 31, Damien Chazelle has already established himself as a visionary. After wowing audiences with the sensational WHIPLASH back in 2014, the young director continues to innovate and push the boundaries of music and storytelling with his latest film LA LA LAND.

Based on the classic Hollywood musicals of the 1940s and 50s, LA LA LAND tells the story of struggling jazz pianist ...

Raw, edgy but ultimately forgetful, AMERICAN HONEY is a coming-of-age film about the highs and low of youth and freedom

British director Andrea Arnold takes a glimpse into the spontaneity and rawness of life with her new coming-of-age film AMERICAN HONEY.

AMERICAN HONEY tells the story of troubled teenager Star (Sasha Lane) who runs away from a broken home to joins a traveling magazine sales crew...

Inspirational, touching and beautifully shot, A UNITED KINGDOM is a tale of love, honour and determination

Following the success of the 2013 British period drama BELLE, director Amma Asante makes a welcome returns to the genre of historical romance with her third feature A UNITED KINGDOM.

Based on a true story, A UNITED KINGDOM tells the tale of Seretse Khama (David Oyelowo), the Prince of Bechuanaland who causes an international stir when he marries Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike), a British whi...

Lola Maguire reviews eight animation shorts at MANIFF 2016

Eight animation shorts made their UK premiere at the 2016 Manchester Film Festival followed by a special Q&A with several of the filmmakers.

Yuting Hsueh’s CGI animation opens to several inanimate test dummies suspended in the seated position, one of whom is a different colour to the other...

Stef Dawson as Annalee and Penn Badgley as Sigurd in THE PAPER STORE. Photo: Richard Sands © 2015

Dark, witty and intelligent, THE PAPER STORE is the ultimate tale of romance and revenge set in academia

Truth and lies take on a new dimension in THE PAPER STORE, a dark academic comedy about a former college student who forges essays for cash.

Based on the acclaimed play 516 (five-sixteen) by Katharine Clark Gray, THE PAPER STORE tells the story of Annalee, an academic ghost writer who works in t...

Hard-hitting, moving and inspiring, BROKE is an intimate tale of redemption, compassion and forgiveness

The topical issue of gambling in the NRL world is thrown into the limelight in Heath Davis’ new debut feature film BROKE, a story of a disgraced sports star and gambling addict who attempts to turn his life around with the support of his number one fan.

The story begins when ageing rail worker Cec, finds his former footy hero turned gambling addict, Ben “BK” Kelly, passed out one evening...