Following the success of the first two rounds of the Digital Cinema Media Fantasy Film League (FFL), we're excited to announce the launch of the third and final round of our league!
Since January, agencies have been pitted against each other, testing their film knowledge and prowess from predicting how the Oscars would play out back in March, to selecting the biggest films of the summer that they thought would earn the most at the UK box office during each films opening week. Read more
Set in the outer reaches of Brooklyn, The Drop opens with a thick New York accent telling us exactly what a 'drop bar' is - a watering hole that doubles as somewhere that money changes hands between the city's shadier characters away from the watchful glare of the police. This bar is run by Marv (James Gandolfini in his final big screen appearance) and tended by his cousin Bob (an utterly convincing Tom Hardy), but ultimately owned by the Chechen mob.
One night, the bar is robbed by two masked gangsters. Marv and Bob are instructed by their ruthless bosses to get the money back, and made aware exactly what will happen to them if they don't as they're shown a badly bludgeoned victim in the back of a van. This is the first of the film's two interlinked narratives; the second begins when Bob discovers a wounded pit bull puppy in a trash can outside local girl Nadia's (Noomi Rapace) house. Together, they help nurse the dog back to health, but almost inevitably, just as their relationship seems to be about to blossom, an old acquaintance of hers (Matthias Schoenarts) returns to stalk and blackmail Bob into returning it. It puts him in a position where he has to make difficult decisions, the repercussions of which contribute to the film's electric climax. Read more
When Cheryl Strayed’s self-penned memoirs hit shelves in 2012, they did so with a bang. Vividly detailing her 1,100 mile trek on the Pacific Coast Trail after her mother’s death, it ended up being selected for Oprah Winfrey’s book club, and the rights to produce the film being snapped up by Reese Witherspoon’s production company. Director Jean-Marc Vallée has returned behind the camera very quickly since the success of last year’s Dallas Buyers Club, which catapulted both Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto to awards success for their towering performances, and it’s safe to say he’s done the same thing here for Witherspoon.
The opening shot of Wild shows us the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), bathed in sunlight and all its natural beauty, with Strayed (Reese Witherspoon) overlooking the gorgeous scenery. However, this is in stark contrast to the state of her feet, which have suffered from the length of the hike as well as wearing boots that are too small for her. The shriek of pain she lets out when she removes them echoes for miles, emphasising just how isolated she is in her quest to achieve closure and how far away she is from the American metropolis. Filmed in a series of interspersed, sometimes hallucinogenic montages, the film bounces to and fro from clips of Strayed’s relationship with her mother, Bobbi (Laura Dern), to various parts of the hike that Strayed has reached. This structure is intelligently used by Vallee, who achieves the right balance by ensuring that the switch between these time frames is entirely relevant, explaining to the viewer exactly how they relate to Strayed’s frame of mind. Wild’s imagery is one of its most striking features – cinematographer Yves Bélanger perfectly captures the trail in all its natural glory – but it’s the significance of images such as the animals Strayed encounters on the trail, to the extreme weather changes, that are used as cues to introduce the audience to the deeper realms of her conscious, and let us know exactly what she’s thinking. Read more
Returning swiftly with already his third feature film, Peter Strickland’s The Duke of Burgundy is a sure-fire contender as part of this year’s official competition at the 58th BFI London Film Festival with its blend of exotic imagery and enigmatic storytelling that overloads the senses.
Much like his first two films - Katalin Varga and Berberian Sound Studio – explaining the details of the plot, as well as giving an impression of the sudden shifts in tone that varies from sensual drama to absurd comedy, is a difficult task. Set in an imagined secluded community populated only by females, two lovers – Cynthia and Evelyn – balance their time between their fascination in entomology (the study of insects, particularly butterflies and moths in this case) and sado-masochistic role play that worryingly dominates the life of one partner and increasingly unnerves the other. Read more
The Imitation Game tells the story of mathematician genius, Alan Turing (Cumberbatch) and his attempts to break the Enigma codes that the German’s were using to send out instructions to their army. Turing is hired by the British government and stationed at Bletchley Park, where he’s tasked with cracking the coded messages that the German army were supplied with every morning. Turing assembles a team of brilliant cryptanalysts, including the dashing, debonair Hugh Alexander (Matthew Goode) and the brilliant Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley), however, none of his team are a match for Turing’s intellectual capability and his abrasive manner and social awkwardness soon causes friction with the other members of his team. While they spend each day attempting to decipher the codes using comparatively simple code-breaking techniques, Turing spends months alone, building a mysterious machine that he insists will break the code. As the war progresses and Turing appears no closer to cracking the codes, he comes under increasing pressure from the government to produce results.
It’s a gripping, involving drama about a story that absolutely needs to be told again (it has previously been covered in 2001’s Enigma). Cumberbatch delivers a wonderful performance as Turing, channeling his intelligence and fragility, while making his awkwardness feel entirely real as opposed to just a series of ticks and mannerisms. It’s possible to argue that the film doesn’t deal enough with Turing’s sexuality, especially considering he was tragically prosecuted for being a homosexual, a series of events that culminated in his suicide. However, a film based on true events as remarkable and extensive as Turing’s life and the events at Bletchley Park has to make judgement calls on what to omit, otherwise there’d be enough incident for three films. Read more
Wednesday night was the opening night gala of the 58th BFI London Film Festival. The opening film was World War II drama, The Imitation Game and the stars were in attendance, including Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley and Mark Strong. Cumberbatch gave an impassioned introduction before the film and with Turing’s family in the audience, emotions were understandably high. After the film, the audience retreated to the Roundhouse in Camden for the after party and the venue was beautifully decorated with vintage furniture.
This year the festival showcases 248 feature films from around the world and 148 short films. There’s also a host of filmmaker talks, Q&As and other events. The festival takes place in 17 venues across London over the next 12 days and tickets are still available for many of the events, so get online or pop down to the BFI box office. It’s a wonderful 12 days in the capital, so don’t miss out. Read more
Following in the wake of the superb Captain Phillips opening last year’s BFI London Film Festival, Yann Demange’s debut ’71 is a worthy counterpart to Paul Greengrass’s film in terms of delivering sheer relentless tension that will have you gasping for air. Even at a brisk 99 minutes, ’71 is as impressive an example of conducting gripping human drama since Greengrass’s own debut Bloody Sunday, and is sure to be heralded in this year’s First Feature Competition strand.
Set in 1971 during the volatile conflict in Northern Ireland, rookie soldier Gary Hook – played by a sensational Jack O’Connell - and his inexperienced regiment are deployed as peacekeepers but are suddenly embroiled in an explosive riot. Separated in the mêlée, Gary is abandoned, left to navigate the murky waters of the Catholic and Protestant divide, as well as the sinister gangsterism of undercover British military – singularly captured in a terrifying performance from Sean Harris. Exactly who is the enemy is constantly questioned as Gary descends further down the rabbit hole. Read more
This year’s BFI London Film Festival kicked off with gala premiere The Imitation Game, the winner of the People’s Choice Award winner at Toronto Film Festival this September. Usually a very reliable predictor of Oscar success, with previous winners such as 12 Years A Slave, Silver Linings Playbook and The King’s Speech all going on to achieve further awards success, it is safe to say that director Morten Tyldum’s expertly crafted tale of Alan Turing and his team of mathematicians cracking enigma during WW2 will be dining at all the top tables this awards season.
The Imitation Game tells the story of Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch) leading a renegade team of code breakers to break German communication efforts in a race against time, but actually gives the audience much more than a simple narrative of English wartime efforts. The film examines the key periods of Turing’s life, such as his unhappy childhood and stint at boarding school, his time at Bletchely helping the government crack Enigma, up to the later stages of his life and eventual post-war decline, to give the audience a fully encompassing story of Turing’s life. These highs and lows are perfectly portrayed by Cumberbatch, whose performance is remarkably layered and nuanced. He brings a variety of emotions to the role, with the film’s lighter moments especially funny yet remarkably subtle, and the middle stages of the film show the genuine wholeheartedness bordering on arrogance with which he believes in his own ability. Cumberbatch deserves significant credit for this – the scenes where he is being interviewed for one of the chief jobs at Bletchley is especially memorable for his quick yet almost nonchalant wit. Read more
This month, we’re giving you eight reasons to love cinema for the remainder of 2014. There are three very big reasons and five smaller ones, but they are all equally as deserving of their place on this list. Read on to learn more about DCM’s eight reasons to continue loving cinema this year...
1. Interstellar Read more
The Weekend Round-up
Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl has been the literary phenomenon over the past 18 months, with seemingly 50% of tube users at any one time reading the book. The film adaptation hit cinemas on Thursday and with master-director, David Fincher pulling the strings, it was hugely anticipated. An opening weekend of £4.1m (including £517k from previews) is a strong start and the second 18-certificate film this year to open above £4m, after January’s The Wolf Of Wall Street (£4.6m). The obvious comparison for Gone Girl is David Fincher’s last film, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Another 18-cert literary adaptation, TGWTDT opened with £4.3m in 2012 but that included four days of previews, so Gone Girl’s opening is much more impressive. TGWTDT finished its run with £12.3m, so Gone Girl will be aiming for a total north of that. Read more
CEA Digital Conference – 27 Nov @ Cineworld at the O2, Greenwich, East London
The ‘Cinema of the Future: innovation driving the audience experience’ conference is open to colleagues from across the industry. Read more
The BFI London Film Festival is set to be promoted through the Digital Cinema Media (DCM) app, cinime.
Those who use the app will receive a notification alerting them that new content will be made available during this year’s BFI London Film Festival, which runs from 8 to 19 October. Read more
