Today’s films will bring to the screen the stunning Swiss Alps, fearless whistleblowers from Russia, a cosmical love story and Iranian poetic realism that is served with a dose of Swedish absurdist comedy.
The Emmy-winning director James Jones will attend the Estonian premiere of the United Kingdom’s documentary Antidote tonight to shed some light on the secret Russian poisoning programme through the victims’ own truth.
After that the Ukrainian film U Are the Universe takes us on a journey with the last lovers of the world to the post-apocalyptic cosmos where we can also find a 63-year-old humorous Neapolitan astrologer Luciana who believes that it only takes a little magic to change our destiny.
The screening of the powerful film Alpha. is the crowning event of Monday’s festival day, fascinating the audience with the merciless force of nature. Universal Language – Canada’s selection for the Oscar submission – is a poignant, but absurd view into a polarised society.
See all the films screening at PÖFF today here!
Director J. Jones; country: United Kingdom
11 nov, Monday at 18.45 at Coca-Cola Plaza
The screening will be attended by the director and producer James Jones.
What is the cost of speaking truth to power? In Putin's Russia, it could be your life. “Antidote” is a real-life documentary that follows a whistleblower from inside Russia's poisoning programme. Emmy-winning director James Jones reveals the human cost of heroism with incredible access to the lives of those fighting for change.
Director: Matthew Rankin; country: Canada
11 nov, Monday at 20.15 at Coca-Cola Plaza
A surreal comedy of misdirection about a fictional Canada where the official languages are French and Persian. In this film Iranian poetic realism and Swedish absurdist comedy melt into one. The film has had successful screenings at the Toronto, Cannes, BFI London, New York and other film festivals.
Universal Language is also Canada’s selection for the Oscar submission.
Director: J.-W. van Ewijk; countries: Netherlands, Switzerland, Slovenia
11 nov, Monday at 19.15 at Cinema Solaris
The masculine confrontation between father and son set against the stunning beauty of the Swiss Alps. In the wake of his mother’s death, Rein moves to a small town in the Swiss Alps where he is teaching snowboarding and has found solace in nature. At least until his father Gijs comes for an unexpected visit from the Netherlands. Alpha. premiered at the Venice film festival.
Director: A. Popkhadze; countries: France, Belgium, Georgia
11 nov, Monday at 20 at Coca-Cola Plaza
“In the Name of Blood” is a gripping crime thriller that follows the aftermath of a brutal murder in Nice, where a member of the Georgian community is killed, mistaken for a powerful Russian oligarch. Shot through a striking lens that immerses the viewer in the gritty reality, it’s a haunting journey of brothers caught between love and bloodshed and strips Nice of its superficial glamour and beauty.
Director: Peter Kerekes; countries: Austria, Italy, Croatia, Slovakia, Czechia
11 nov, Monday at 18.45 at Cinema Sõprus
Luciana, a Neapolitan astrologer, has a method to make her clients’ wishes come true. All they need to do is take a trip on their birthday to a precise destination to be reborn under a new sky. The documentary is not a mere study in mysticism, but an emphatical view on a very human desire to find a meaning in the world full of endless chaos.
Director: P. Ostrikov; countries: Ukraine, Belgium
11 nov, Monday at 21.30 at Cinema Solaris
A galactic love story between the last humans in a post-apocalyptic cosmos. In the centre of this film placed in the near future is a Ukrainian space trucker, Andriy Melnyk, who transports nuclear waste to the abandoned Jupiter’s moon Callisto. The film has been screened at the Fantastic Fest, Toronto and Sitgese film festivals.
Director: J. Ashcroft; country: New Zealand
11 nov, Monday at 21.45 at Cinema Solaris
This clever and intelligent horror comedy will see two of the film world’s greats, Rush and Lithgow, go head-to-head, playing men, who have to face the phenomena called ageing and the fear of death. The film - this year’s favourite of writer Stephen King - has been gathering awards at the Austin Fantastic Fest and Sitges film festival.