Best of Cinéfest (that we saw)

It's been a busy week since coming back from Cinéfest but we didn't want to sign off on that before sharing with you some of our favourites that we saw there!

First of all, as I mentioned in an earlier post, the filmgoers at Sudbury Cinéfest are hardcore cinephiles who see upwards of 30+ films in the eight-day span of the festival. We saw maybe half of that number but were fortunate with the ones we did see. We gave a brief review of two others of o ur favourites, RED ARMY and MOMMY earlier. So without further adieu, in no particular order, our favourite films of Cinéfest Sudbury 2014:

WHIPLASH
Fantastic music, mesmerizing performances from J.K. Simmons and Miles Teller, and hands down one of the most thrilling final acts of a film I've seen in a long time. As Jon said, "We just saw a classic."



'71



Outstanding thriller. Taut, tense, with moments of tragic humour. Jack O'Connell stars as a soldier caught behind enemy lines during The Troubles in Ireland. It's hard to know which side is which - and I think that's partly the point of the film. O'Connell has maybe 20 lines in the whole movie but carries it powerfully.

CAMP X-RAY



Our friend Peter Sattler (Jonathan's classmate from North Carolina School of the Arts) wrote and directed this slow-burn of a psychological thriller starring Kristen Stewart as a fresh army recruit at Guantanamo Bay and Peyman Moaadi as a detainee who tries to befriend her. More from a favourable review from The Hollywood Reporter:
[It] balances a powerfully internalized performance from Kristen Stewart, delivering perhaps her best screen work to date as an inexperienced military guard, against an equally compelling characterization from Peyman Moaadi as the long-term detainee who pierces her shell. Its psychological complexity and rich emotional rewards should ensure this expertly crafted if overlong film a significant audience.


CAST NO SHADOW


CAST NO SHADOW - Festival Trailer from The Screen Asylum on Vimeo.
This film cleaned up at Atlantic Film Festival in Halifax, scoring trophies including those for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. Shot entirely on the wild shores of Newfoundland, this film is dark and beautiful. Definitely one of Canada's best films this year. I ran into producers Chris Agoston, Allison White, and Chris Hatcher at one of the galas and they were super supportive of THE VOLUNTEER - it gave us inspiration to see what the next step looks like!


GOD HELP THE GIRL


This film was of particular interest to us as our ridiculously talented camera operator on THE VOLUNTEER, Ben Barber, had worked with Olly Alexander and Emily Brown on Alexander's music video for his band Years and Years. This film is an absolute joy to watch as both Brown and Alexander are mesmerizing from beginning to end - check it out!