The 59th BFI London Film Festival is underway. Here are a couple of reviews covering the films I’ve seen so far.
11 Minutes
11 Minutes follows the lives of several people within close proximity to one another over the course of 11 minutes (which, due to simultaneous action takes about 80 mins to get through), cutting back and forth between them in the build up to a big finale where everyone is caught up in the same event. In other words, it’s very late-90s. Formally similarly films like Magnolia (ensemble cross-cutting) or Run Lola Run (innovative use of time) work by engaging the viewer with interesting characters and dynamic editing. Meanwhile, 11 Minutes feels flat, featuring blandly functional digital photography and lacklustre performances. The conceit of 11 Minutes is in the climax – a high concept farce of car crashes and explosions – which would have worked perfectly appended to a short film, but as it is 11 Minutes features 77 minutes of un-engaging soap-opera, plus 3 minutes of well constructed action-comedy.
Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story)
Bang Gang deals in the well explored convections of the teen-coming age genre, but it’s approach feels fresh and existing. In the film, a group of middle-class French teens engage in a series of ever more extravagant parties and, as you may suspect form the title, one thing leads to another (‘another’ being syphilis). Everything from the soundtrack to the camerawork, the stellar performances (from a cast of mostly newcomers), the integration of social media, and the film’s approach to sexual discovery is contemporary and relevant – but not so overtly that it dates the film specifically to 2015. French director Eva Husson (who was also interesting and engaging at the Q&A afterward the screening) honed her craft in American music videos, and it’s that integration of American style with French artistic grounding that really works. She’s certainly one to watch for the future.
The Assassin
The Assassin is respected Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s first foray into the wu xia (swordplay) genre. It’s slow, subtle, and absolutely gorgeous to look art. The outbursts of violence are rare, but when they occur, they are briefly, breathtakingly, spectacular. The Assassin is shot in Academy Ratio, on 35mm, and makes use of expansive natural landscapes and extravagant period sets. Every shot is framed so well it could be hung in a gallery. In terms of plot and characterisation though, the film is a little too subtle at times on first viewing. Ostensibly the film is about Tang Dynasty-period politics and attempted assassinations, but in reality it’s a character study of a female assassin who is stoic on the outside, yet emotionally complex in a very subtle way internally (it took me til the end of the film to realise this). But overall, The Assassin is wonderfully constructed, beautifully shot, features pitch perfect performances, has an outstanding score, and includes wonderful action choreography.
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