BIFA’s Melisa Bakir hit the red carpets of LFF to tell us about the best new independent releases to look out for in a cinema near you.
This year’s BFI London Film Festival was packed with countless new British independent voices, including several films which can also be found on the 2022 BIFA longlists.
We wanted to shine a light on some of our favourites from this year’s festival including Aftersun, Blue Jean, and Medusa Deluxe which are all longlisted for this year’s Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director). We’re also excited to talk about The Eternal Daughter, the latest feature from 5-time BIFA-nominated writer/director Joanna Hogg.
AFTERSUN
UK 2022, Dir. Charlotte Wells
Scottish writer/director Charlotte Wells’ directorial debut, Aftersun, crafts a beautiful deep dive into the relationship between 11-year-old Sophie (Frankie Corio) and her father (Paul Mescal). Sophie looks back on a summer spent with her father at a Turkish holiday resort, where they try and collect as many fun memories together as possible. Sophie in the present, now an adult, watches MiniDV footage from the holiday, desperately trying to understand and remember more about her father, but just as it was when she was a child, there are things she simply does not know. The film beautifully explores memory, and the idealistic lens through which we view our parents as children. The film is comprised of subtle realisations in which Sophie comes to accept her father as a mystery unable to be solved. She senses that something odd is going on with her father and is left trying to put together the pieces. However, just like Sophie, we need to accept that we will never know our parents as well as we would like to, and no matter how many clues we search for in the past, some mysteries will never be solved.
BLUE JEAN
UK 2022, Dir. Georgia Oakley
Another brilliant directorial debut at LFF was Georgia Oakley’s Blue Jean. Set in the UK during the introduction of Section 28 (a group of laws prohibiting the promotion of homosexuality) the film follows a closeted teacher struggling to find her own identity. The story is a great contrast to the more mainstream LGBTQ+ films about pride and belonging, in which characters are often seen fighting for their rights and acceptance. Instead, Blue Jean dives deeper into identity politics and internalised shame, portrayed through an astonishing performance from Rosy McEwen. The main character is neither a hero nor a villain but is simply trying to do what’s easiest for her until she meets a young student in her class who forces her to act upon the things she was desperately trying to hide. This quiet yet effective film tells the story of queer people we hear about the least, the ones who were simply trying to survive in a time where they felt unwanted.
MEDUSA DELUXE
UK 2022, Dir. Thomas Hardiman
A murder mystery set at a hair styling competition was one of the biggest surprises at LFF this year. Thomas Hardiman’s debut feature is an exciting new take on the murder mystery genre, with great comedic moments. Its stunning visuals, from its eccentric hair pieces and costumes to the cinematography, are perfectly crafted, even when several locations are changed within minutes of the same shot. The film’s long continuous shots create an urgent and exciting atmosphere as characters run around the building, in real-time, trying to solve the murder. There is no shortage of surprises from Medusa Deluxe, even the very last seconds of the film offer thrills from its brilliant ensemble cast.
THE ETERNAL DAUGHTER
UK 2022, Dir. Joanna Hogg
Joanna Hogg is back with The Eternal Daughter, one of her most personal and darkest films yet. Tilda Swinton plays both parts of a mother-daughter duo who visit an old hotel, where, sharing a room, they spend a couple of days together. The audience, along with the daughter, are left to try and uncover the mysteries of the ominous hotel. As its secretive staff members and empty rooms are unveiled, we begin to discover that the bigger mystery might be the mother herself. The most thrilling elements are tied to the daughter’s relentless need to get to know her mother better before she is left without her. But instead, the more questions she asks, the less she understands. The film is a beautiful depiction of a mother-daughter relationship and the desperate need to know more about your parents, so they can live on forever in your mind.
Stay tuned for this year’s BIFA nominations which will be announced Friday 4 November and check out the 2022 BIFA longlists here.
By: Melisa Bakir
