BBC First British Film Festival 2016

October 24, 2016

The popular BBC First British Film Festival is back in Brisbane, ready to generate a bucketful of tears, laughs aplenty and enough love and heartbreak to satisfy the most ardent filmgoer.

Now in its fourth year, exclusively at Palace Barracks, the festival runs from October 27 to November 16.

The program of new and retrospective old movies is expected to draw record numbers and outstrip last year’s admissions which were up 30 per cent on the previous year.

This year the festival has 16 new releases, opening with the Australian premiere of the romantic drama A United Kingdom which comes straight from its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

The film is based on the true story of a young Prince of Botswana who caused an international scandal when he married a white English woman in 1948.

Other high profile films including Ken Loach’s I, Daniel Blake, which was awarded the prestigious Palm D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, Tommy’s Honour, directed by Jason Connery, which tells the historic tale of Scottish champions and real-life founders of the modern game of golf – Tom Morris and his son Tommy.

I, Daniel Blake is a program highlight, showcasing Loach’s signature style. The film is a complex exploration of socio-economic issues in Britain, telling the story of 59-year-old carpenter, Daniel, who, after working as a joiner for most of his life in Newcastle injures himself and requires help from the state. He befriends Katie, a single mother with two young children and the two form a mutually beneficial alliance.

Complementing this will be a documentary, Versus: The Life and Films of Ken Loach, on the director as well as his first feature film Poor Cow, which hasn’t been seen on Australian screens in decades.

Also straight from this year’s BFI London Film Festival comes Trespass Against Us, the narrative debut feature from up-and-coming British director Adam Smith. It is a thrilling crime-drama starring Michael Fassbender (The Light Between Oceans, Steve Jobs) and Brendan Gleeson (Gangs of New York, Calvary).

The retrospective, Local Heroes, includes 10 films that are a specially curated and an ode to some of Britain’s cinematic heroes.

These include such classics as Room at the Top (1959), Highlander (1986), The Man Who Fell From Earth(1976), Sid And Nancy (1986) and the James Bond thriller Goldfinger.

http://britishfilmfestival.com.au/

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