The Cunard British Film Festival shines a spotlight on its tenth anniversary this week as it opens around the country with Mrs. Harris Goes to Parris. In the most British way possible, cinema goers for opening night were treated to a G&T upon arrival while listening to some wonderful live music. Though there wasn’t a cup of tea in sight everyone was ready for what is set to be a grand festival.
Opening night gave audiences a heartwarming journey with Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris. A wonderful story of Mrs. Harris a widowed cleaner in the 1950s. After finding a beautiful Dior dress in a client’s home, she decides she will do what she can to save the money and treat herself.
The problem is, when Mrs. Harris arrives in Paris things don’t quite go to plan. With nothing to lose and making some good friends along the way, Mrs. Harris shows the Parisian’s that British confidence with a sprinkle of motherly love.
It’s fun, funny, heartwarming, devastating but most of all one you’ll leave the cinema with a big smile and a desperation to have Mrs. Harris in your life.
If that’s not enough to get your British film cinematic journey flickering, the month-long festival will have something for everyone. The festival will showcase a spectacularly curated line up of Bond films as Bond celebrates 60 years on the big screen. From Sean Connery in Goldfinger to Roger Moore in The Man with the Golden Gun just to name a few. You can’t have a 60 year celebration without Pierce Brosnan and Goldeneye as well as the latest Bond, Daniel Craig and Casino Royale amongst others.
The festival showcases some of the world’s greatest actors and actresses with the likes of Emma Thompson in What’s Love Got to Do with It?, the festival’s closing night event. Oliva Colman in Joyride. Colin Firth stars alongside Brendan Gleeson in The Banshees of Inisherin. The ever brilliant Bill Nighy in Living. And the hilarious Steve Coogan in The Lost King, an Australian Premiere.
With more films to pick from than time to watch them here are a select few the team here at Novastream are excited to see.
Olivia Colman (The Favourite, The Lost Daughter, The Crown) stars in Empire of Light, a film from Director Sam Mendes (Spectre, 1917, Jarhead). This is tipped to be a love letter to cinema from Mendes. Set in the 1980s in an English seaside town are two lovers Hilary (Coleman) and Stephen who share the tales of a cinema. Visually this is brought together by Oscar winning Cinematographer Roger Deakins. This is the visionary who gave us those epic long shots in 1917 or those in your face character driven films like Doubt or No Country for Old Men.
The Banshees of Inisherin is tipped to be an awards season favourite. Director Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) manages to get Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson back together who both starred in In Bruges (2008). The film is set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland during the Irish civil war. When their friendship ends a young islander does his best to repair their friendship and refuses to take no for an answer.
Paul Mescal (Normal People, The Lost Daughter) is Calum the father of newcomer Frankie Corio as Sophie. The two go on a beachside holiday both unknowing what the future holds. It’s a beautiful mess of emotion for Calum feeling lost in a world he doesn’t quite fit in. But he does hold a wealth of love, though perhaps struggling to show it towards his daughter who is discovering just how much the world has to offer.It’s a lovely tale of a father and daughter and their relationship over time. The beauty of this film is in the way it’s expressed almost as if it’s a dream of memories you don’t know the meaning of.
Brian and Charles will leave you laughing and intrigued by their relationship. Loner and self proclaimed inventor Brian manages to create Charles using AI and an old washing machine and a mannequin head.
Filmed as a mockumentary style, it’s a heartwarming story as the two build a beautiful friendship giving Brian the courage he needs to fall in love, let people into his life and stand up to the haters.
Fisherman’s Friends 2: One and All is the follow up to the success of the sea shanty singing man-band, Fisherman’s Friends (2019). Based on the band that took the world by storm with their shanty’s they are working on their follow up album. This is all whilst navigating a new contract with the record label and pulling some strings to sing on the Iconic Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
James Norton (Little Women, Mr Jones, Nowhere Special) stars alongside Gemma Arterton in Rogue Agent. It’s a tale of a time before the Tinder Swindler or the growing threat of online scammers, a man using his charm to suck people into his lies and spit them out poor and broken.
It follows Robert Freegard (Norton) as he pretends to be an MI5 agent recruiting civilians to help with made up operations. He would suck these people in, sometimes even kidnap them and manage to extort them or their families out of a lot of money. That is until he meets Alice Archer (Arterton), a lawyer who very quickly discovers what is going on and sets out to put a stop to him.
Do yourself a favour and head online to see the full lineup of the Cunard British Film Festival for 2022. It runs across all major capital cities from October 19 through to November 16. There are some special screenings where you can enjoy morning tea or even an Australian Premiere. The festival has pulled out the red carpet for their tenth anniversary and it’s surely not one to miss.
