Director: Virpi Suutari (2019) I came into Aalto with a working understanding of the times and context Alvar Aalto worked in, but not much of an understanding of the architect himself. If you find yourself interested, and similarly are in situation A, B or even neither – the documentary has plenty to offer. Aalto presents the architect as an outsider who came of age as … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Aalto
What: The Surrogate When & how much: There are no further screenings of this film scheduled during the Adelaide Film Festival, but keep an eye out for other festivals or a wider release **This review contains some spoilers for The Surrogate (2020)** In my early undergraduate years, I wrote a research essay on gestational surrogacy for a summer school class on human rights. Wading through … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: The Surrogate
Director: Joshua Wong Five years have passed since a tsunami has ravaged Hong Kong, transforming the metropolis into a flooded dilapidated wasteland. Amid the debris survives Asha, a young women who found a safe haven in the top floors of a high rise that still stands. Fashioning contraptions from the rubbish that surrounds her, this resourceful protagonist is hiding from a gang of violent pirates, … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: The Calm Beyond
What: My First SummerWhen: AFF is over, but a full release will come, keep your eyes out! My First Summer is writer and director Katie Found’s first feature film, and if this is anything to go by, she’s going to do great things. Grace (Adelaide’s Maiah Stewardson) lives in a small town, somewhere in rural Victoria. She’s different to everyone else there. Her mum and … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: My First Summer
Director: Michael Bentham 2019 Australia 84 minutes More info here. Disclosure takes place over a single afternoon, poolside at a beautiful villa somewhere in the Victorian countryside. What starts as a friendly if dull exchange between two 40-something Aussie couples quickly descends into a heated and tense confrontation. Based on a true story, Disclosure follows two sets of parents as they try to navigate the … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Disclosure
What: Shiva BabyWhere: Palace Nova CinemasWhen: Final showing Sunday 25th October 5:15pm and Wednesday 28th October 8:15pm Danielle (Rachel Sennott) is a typical, 20-something Jewish woman living in New York. What she lacks in self-direction, her overbearing parents are attempting to make up for. In Shiva Baby, we are dropped into her life as she attends shiva for a distant family member, along with her … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Shiva Baby
Director: Mariusz Wilczyński 2019 Poland 88 minutes Further information: Adelaide Film Festival website (no further sessions), the film’s website Kill It and Leave this Town is sombre, grotesque, nightmarish… and yet a surprisingly relatable, human story of one man’s nostalgia for the Polish city of his childhood, and his regret at not making the most of his time with his parents and best friend while … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Kill It and Leave This Town
Attending any shorts screening is always a treat, and AFF’s 2020 animation shorts was no exception. Bringing together eight films from around the world across a variety of mediums, the selection was a saga of hilarious, terrifying, and touching moments. I’ve ranked my top five shorts and how their unique appeal enraptured the audience. 5. Crab dir. Shiva Sadegh Asadi This dark and utterly terrifying … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Animation Shorts
What: Firestarter – The Story of Bangarra When: 24 October 8.45pm, 25 October 4.40pm (sold out), 29 October 6.00pm How much: see Adelaide Film Festival website for details Cultural advisory: this review contains references to Aboriginal people who have passed away. “Using our artform as our weapons is the way we have to fight.” – David Page Bangarra is a Wiradjuri word meaning ‘making fire’. … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: Firestarter
What: How to Build a Girl When: 24 October 5:00pm (last screening!) Cost: See website for details How to Build a Girl is based on the novel by Caitlin Moran of the same name. Set in the 1990s, it is about a journey of self-discovery, sexual experimentation and the idea of desiring more. It’s a narrative that has been explored before, that is intended to … Continue reading Adelaide Film Festival 2020: How to Build a Girl
