This week, make it a priority to go see Censor, the stylish feature debut from Welsh writer-director Prano Bailey-Bond. Set in Thatcher’s Britain during the moral panic of the Video Nasties, we witness how a film triggers a censor’s repressed childhood memories, and the repercussions that ensue. The film opened in both Sundance and the Berlinale this year, and is one of the most exciting debuts we’ve seen in a long time.
We had the pleasure of interviewing Prano Bailey-Bond, who spoke to us about what drew her to the Video Nasty era, her way of portraying 80s Britain, and how governments will do anything to scapegoat in order to not face themselves in the mirror.
Also out this week is Xavier Dolan’s excellent Matthias & Maxime and Old, the new film by M. Night Shyamalan. There’s a fantastic concept at the heart of his 13th feature film, but the wildly inconsistent filmmaker squanders it through a laughably poor execution and dialogue to make your ears bleed. It becomes inadvertently hilarious and borderline worth watching to note down at what point you can’t hold your laughter in any longer.
Lastly, there are two high-profile releases out today and as of writing, we haven’t seen either one, so please forgive us. We’ll do better next time. The first, Disney’s Jungle Cruise, looks like a Pirates of the Caribbean-aping adventure yarn that it could be a heap of mindless fun; as for the second, The Green Knight, we’re watching it today, so watch this space for our full review.
Censor is out in cinemas and screens on Saturday at Creepy Crypt (Photo: Kinostar Filmverleih)
Events-wise, we’ve fashioned a handy viewing schedule. Don’t say we don’t treat you:
Tonight (29/07): Head to Freiluftkino Hasenheide to watch Proxima (18:30). It’s an authentic-feeling space film that doubles up as an equally authentic mother-daughter story which deals with separation, liberation and motherhood. If that short blurb hasn’t tempted you, click on the film title for our full review and make sure to check out our interview with the award-winning French screenwriter and director Alice Winocour, who shared with us how she subverted a crowded genre, as well as why it was important for her to establish a link between space and motherhood.
30/07: ARTE Sommerkino Schloss Charlottenberg is screening Promising Young Woman, the Oscar-winning film by Emerald Fennell which sees Carey Mulligan give the performance of her already impressive career and has given the rape-revenge subgenre a shake-up not seen since 2005’s Hard Candy. Its release has been postponed several times and it is currently scheduled to come out in kinos in 3 weeks’ time. Catch it early (21:30).
31/07: Creepy Crypt is showing Censor. I think we’ve made it clear enough by now how brilliant we think it is, so get booking your tickets (Rollberg – 22:30).
01/08: Missed out on getting tickets for Proxima on Thursday? Fear not, as Freiluftkino Hasenheide are doing a repeat screening. Oh, and did we mention we interviewed the wonderful Alice Winocour? We did? Well, shucks.
02/08: We’re very excited about this last one. Mobile Kino are hosting an evening of Sundance Short Films (Alte Münze – 21:15), and you’d be a fool to miss out on the underseen gems which showcase the talents of soon-to-be household filmmaking names.
There we have it. Stay safe, happy screenings – what’s your favourite Video Nasty? – and see you next week.