What to see at VIFF 2016

If you—like me—regularly turn to the subtitled section of Netflix, or start craving something with a bit of soul just as the leaves start to turn, then you’ll love these six films (running Sept. 29-Oct. 14) at VIFF. —Kelsey Klassen

Maudie (Canada/Ireland)

Starring: Sally Hawkins, Ethan Hawke, Gabrielle Rose

Synopsis: The life of legendary Canadian folk artist Maud Lewis is painted in exquisite detail in this impeccably acted, incredibly affecting 1930s biopic. At the beating heart of Aisling Walsh’s film is Sally Hawkins (beloved by VIFF audiences for her performances in Happy-Go-Lucky and Made in Dagenham), who not only captures the contorted physicality of this self-taught painter, who contended with rheumatoid arthritis, but also exudes the creative spirit raging within her despite her debilitated frame.

The draw: The petite Nova Scotian was a Canadian “Naïve art” pioneer, who still ranks as one of the country’s best-known folk artists.

Screening: Thursday, Sept. 29 at 6:30pm (opening night gala); Saturday, Oct. 1 at 1pm; and Monday, Oct. 10 at 6:30pm.

 

Manchester by the Sea (USA)

Starring: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler

Synopsis: One of the highlights of this year’s Sundance, and sure to make waves come Oscar season, Manchester by the Sea is an emotional epic that navigates the choppy waters of day-to-day existence. Through the perspective of Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck in a career-best performance), the film examines a family both bound and separated by past tragedy.

The draw: A master of emotion, this is director Kenneth Lonergan’s follow-up his 2011 heartbreaker Margaret.

Screening: Thursday, Oct. 6 at 6pm; Saturday, Oct. 8 at 2:15pm; and Wednesday, Oct. 12 at 8:30pm.

 

Personal Shopper (France)

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Nora Von Waldstätten

Synopsis: Re-teaming after 2014’s Clouds of Sils Maria, director Olivier Assayas returns with this ethereal and mysterious ghost story starring Kristen Stewart as a high-fashion personal shopper to the stars who is also a spiritual medium. Grieving the recent death of her twin brother, she haunts his Paris home, determined to make contact with him.

The draw: Some genuine scares as Kristen Stewart continues to obliterate all talk of vampires.

Screening: Thursday, Oct. 6 at 9:30pm; Saturday, Oct. 8 at 1pm; and Thursday, Oct. 13 at 6:30pm.

 

A Quiet Passion (UK/Belgium)

Starring: Cynthia Nixon, Jennifer Ehle, Keith Carradine

Synopsis: The life of the great American poet Emily Dickinson (played here by a superb Cynthia Nixon) is brought luminously to life by, appropriately enough, a master poet of the cinema, Terence Davies (The Deep Blue Sea, Of Time and the City).

The draw: Davies shining a nuanced light on the passion and intellect of a trailblazing feminist.

Screening: Monday, Oct. 3 at 6pm; and Sunday, Oct. 9 at 11am.

 

Toni Erdmann (Germany)

Starring: Sandra Hüller, Peter Simonischek, Michael Wittenborn

Synopsis: When Maren Ade’s debut The Forest for the Trees played VIFF 04, everyone who saw it knew she was destined for big things. Well, the very funny and yet deeply poignant Toni Erdmann is that big thing: a sui generis slice of bravura filmmaking, with a depth and a range of feeling—from the hilarious to the profoundly moving—that are extraordinarily rare these days. It is no secret that many critics and festival programmers thought the film deserved the Palme d’Or at Cannes—it is, in a word, a masterpiece.

The draw: Laughing through tears at this skewering of corporate culture and the human condition.

Screening: Friday, Sept. 30 at 8:30pm; Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 8:30pm; and Thursday, Oct. 13 at 2:15pm.

 

Franca: Chaos and Creation (USA/Italy)

Featuring: Courtney Love, Baz Luhrmann, Naomi Campbell, Karl Lagerfeld, Donatella Versace, Jeff Koons

Synopsis: When fashion insiders want to visit the territory where fashion, art and provocation meet, they pick up Vogue Italia, considered the world’s most important fashion magazine. With Franca: Chaos and Creation, director Francesco Carrozzini has made an intimate portrait of his mother, Franca Sozzani, the legendary editor-in-chief of the magazine since 1988.

The draw: The fascinating life of a fashion rule breaker.

Screening: Wednesday, Oct. 12 at 6pm; and Friday, Oct. 14 at 4pm.

 

Moonlight (USA)

Starring: Naomie Harris, Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Janelle Monáe

Synopsis: Sophomore writer-director Barry Jenkins’ (Medicine for Melancholy) Florida-set coming-of-age tale eschews the usual tropes common to the genre in favour of an urgent, deeply felt take on what it means to be a black man in America today.

The draw: Watching newcomer Trevante Rhodes falling in and out of love, and luminous Grammy-winner Janelle Monáe lighting up the silver screen.

Screening: Friday, Oct. 7.

 

Special mention: Our boy from Girls, Adam Driver, tackling life as a bus driver and poet in Paterson.

 

VITA is a proud sponsor of VIFF 2016.