See the best of new British films in the original at Ukraina cinema
This year’s British Film Festival looks to be one of the best yet, with the cinema lining up a range of flicks, from romantic dramas ala Notting Hill to biting social satires and weird and wonderful art house offerings. For the first time in the seven years that the festival has taken place, its program of eight films will be screened not only in Kyiv and other biggest cities of Ukraine but in all the regional centers of Ukraine as well. The festival films included in this year’s program have been awarded 54 times in total and nominated 112 times. As usual all the films will be shown twice – in dubbed and original versions with subtitles in Ukrainian or Russian.
The 7th British Film Festival will open with “Notes on a Scandal,” a film adapted from the 2003 novel of the same name by Zoe Heller, and directed by Richard Eyre (a special guest of the festival), starring Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett and Bill Nighy. The movie is nominated for Academy Awards for Best Screenplay, Best Soundtrack, and Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Actress in a Supporting Role, owing to the wonderful acting of star-duet Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett.
The romantic comedy “Venus” stars the incomparable Peter O’Toole and it is well worth it to see this movie just for him. In the film he portrays an aging actor who falls for his friend’s young granddaughter.
A dark tale of sex, strangeness and rock music, “Brothers of the Head” is a mockumentary featuring the story of conjoined twins Tom and Barry Howe – a freak show turned proto-punk sensation.
“Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story,” a comedy Michael Winterbottom, is a film-within-a-film, with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing themselves as the egotistical lead and “co-lead” actors in an adaptation of the notoriously unfilmable English literature masterpiece, “The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman,” by Laurence Sterne.
The dramatic thriller, “The Last King of Scotland,” is based on Giles Foden’s novel of the same name, describing the events of the brutal Ugandan dictator Idi Amin’s regime as seen by his personal physician during the 1970s. The film has already brought an Academy award to Forest Whitaker, and boasts total 30 wins and 15 nominations.
“Kinky Boots” tells the story of a traditional Northampton shoemaker, based in Earls Barton, who turns to producing fetish footwear in order to save the ailing family business and the jobs of his workers.
Part drama, part documentary, “The Road to Guantanamo” focuses on the Tipton Three, a trio of British Muslims who were held in Guantanamo Bay for two years until they were released without charge.
“Irina Palm,” a tragicomedy starring Marianne Faithfull and Miki Manojlovic, evolves around middle-aged Maggie, who must find a way to get enough money for her grandson’s lifesaving medical treatment.
Ukraina (5 Horodetskoho, 279-6750). From Nov. 22 till Nov. 30. Tickets Hr 25
Notes on a Scandal
Nov. 22, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 23, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
Venus
Nov. 23, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 24, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
Brothers of the Head
Nov. 24, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 25, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story
Nov. 25, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 26, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
The last king of Scotland
Nov. 26, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 27, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
Kinky Boots
Nov. 27, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 28, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
The Road to Guantanamo
Nov. 28, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 29, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
Irina Palm
Nov. 29, 7 p.m. (in Ukrainian)
Nov. 30, 9:10 p.m. (in English)
