Film Festivals 2005
Once again the wide world of cinema offers a cache of captivating films. From France the delightful 'Look at Me', Tony Gatlif's 'Exils' and horror/slasher 'The Ordeal'. 'Hotel Rwanda' and documentary 'Darwin's Nightmare' unlock some of Africa's darkest secrets while from Hong Kong came the diverse '2046' and Stephen Chow's comic tour de force 'Kung Fu Hustle'. From the US, Gregg Araki's disturbing 'Mysterious Skin', 'Birth' with Nicole Kidman and understated Southern pot-boiler 'Undertow'. Stand-out documentaries also included 'Wal-mart: The High Cost of Low Price', the incredible 'DiG!' and from North Korea a fascinating insight with 'A State of Mind'.
The Woodsman (2004)
7.2/10
Director: Nicole Kassell
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Eve , Mos Def, David Alan Grier, Benjamin Bratt
After twelve years in prison, Walter (Kevin Bacon) moves into a small apartment, gets a job and keeps to himself. But as a convicted sex offender his... Read more
The World According to Bush (2004)
7.9/10
Director: William Karel
A.k.a. "Le Monde Selon Bush". On 20 January 2001, amid high controversy and with no clear majority, eight years after his father, George W. Bush moved... Read more
Three Dollars (2005)
6.3/10
Director: Robert Connolly
Starring: David Wenham, Sarah Wynter, Frances O'Connor, Joanna Hunt-Prokhovnik, Nico Bille...
Sophomore effort from Aussie director Robert Connolly re-teams him with David Wenham ('The Bank') who plays Eddie, a public servant and father to six-... Read more
Thumbsucker (2005)
6.6/10
Director: Mike Mills
Starring: Lou Taylor Pucci, Tilda Swinton, Vince Vaughn, Vincent D'Onofrio, Keanu Reeves,...
Striking the perfect balance between adolescent awkwardness and black comedy, this film stars Lou Taylor Pucci as a neurotic 17-year-old whose coping... Read more
Turtles Can Fly (2004)
8.1/10
Director: Bahman Ghobadi
Starring: Soran Ebrahim, Hirsh Feyssal, Avaz Latif
On the border of Iraq and Turkey, in the days leading up to the second US-led war, a young technology-obsessed boy nicknamed Satellite convinces the v... Read more
Undertow (2004)
6.7/10
Director: David Gordon Green
Starring: Devon Alan, Jamie Bell, Robert Longstreet, Dermot Mulroney, Josh Lucas, Kristen...
You can practically feel the humidity coming off the screen in David Gordon Green's atmospheric, Southern Gothic-flavoured thriller, evoking 'The Nigh... Read more
Wal-Mart: The High Cost Of Low Price (2005)
6.8/10
Director: Robert Greenwald
The shameful practices of the USA Wal-Mart corporation, and their impact on family-owned businesses and private citizens, are put under the harsh micr... Read more
Yes (2004)
6.8/10
Director: Sally Potter
Starring: Joan Allen, Simon Abkarian, Sam Neill, Shirley Henderson, Sheila Hancock
Sally Potter's daring and artful meditation on the dynamics of romantic and sexual relationships stars Joan Allen as 'She' the frustrated housewife of... Read more