The Spinoff’s film and TV critic Alex Casey read the whole film festival brochure so you don’t have to. Here are her picks of the ones to book now.
High-Rise
Don’t let Tom Hiddleston cradling Taylor Swift on a rocky beach be the most searing image of the actor in 2016. Instead, see him dress super sharply in some well-fitted 1960s nihilism in High-Rise. Based on the novel by J G Ballard, High-Rise is a relentless satire on the dizzying heights and grim lows of stratified society. Directed by Ben Wheatley (A Field in England) and also starring Jeremy Irons, High-Rise takes place in a luxury apartment complex built on status, the foundations of which begin to collapse as the lower floors become more and more unstable. It looks to be slick, wicked and include at least one barbequed dog.
Le Ride
Phil Keoghan returns to our shores with a whole new amazing race of his own in Le Ride. Pairing up with his best mate Ben Cornell, the pair set out to recreate the gruelling track and absurd conditions of the 1928 Tour de France, including heavy steel vintage bikes with no gear shifts. Paying tribute to unsung New Zealander Harry Watson, who participated in 1928 with three other rough and ready Aussies, Phil and Ben attempt to complete the 3500 km tour that saw the least people cross the finish line thoughout all of Tour de France history.
Weiner
It’s the documentary that comes with lashings of Oscar buzz, Weiner takes a look – ahem – at the scandal started by Anthony Weiner’s weiner. Cast your mind back to 2011, when the then-Democratic congressman posted a picture of his junk to Twitter. Cue a scandal of sizzling proportions. Weiner picks up the story two years later, where the mad butcher of the Democrats is now bidding to be the mayor of New York City. Observing every move, the camera is there when yet another dick pic tabloid scandal blows up in his face, leaving the audience trapped in what feels like an endless spiral of engrossing cringe entertainment.