One of the oldest European film festivals, Locarno celebrates its 71st edition with a vibrant programme of new films featuring 13 world premieres. Artistic director Carlo Chatrain curates his final festival before moving on to take over the reins of the Berlinale, and you can see what qualified him for the job in this exciting lineup.
Of fifteen films in competition for the Golden Leopard, three are directed by women and many feature female protagonists such as Kent Jones’s Diane, which was a hit at Tribeca earlier this year. The debut drama stars Mary Kay Place as a widow looking after her adult son in a poignant portrait of old age and regret. At the other end of the age range, Alice T. is a drama about teen pregnancy from Romanian auteur Radu Muntean.
British artist Richard Billingham will also be debuting as director with Ray and Liz, a feature recounting the lives of his parents. Milorad Krstic will also present his feature debut with the animated film Ruben Brandt, Collector. The director of the award-winning Tir Alberto Fasulo premieres his second feature Menocchio, an inquisition set period drama about an old man resisting the increasingly intolerant atmosphere of his times.
The Piazza Grande will also host Hollywood big-hitter Antoine Fuqua with the next episode in his Denzel Washington-led revenge franchise The Equalizer 2. There’s also a retrospective of Leo McCary’s vintage comedy work and Bruno Dumont will premiere the first episodes of his L’il Quinquin follow-up Coincoin et les z’Inhumains. Ethan Hawke and Meg Ryan will also be on hand to receive career-wide honours.
Piazza Grande
Birds Of Passage by Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra
BlacKkKlansman by Spike Lee
Blaze by Ethan Hawke
Coincoin et les z’Inhumains by Bruno Dumont (world premiere)
I Feel Good by Benoît Delépine, Gustave Kerverne
Les Beaux Esprits by Vianney Lebasque (world premiere)
Le Vent Tourne by Bettina Oberli (world premiere)
Liberty by Leo McCarey
L’Ospite by Duccio Chiarini (world premiere)
L’Ordre des Médecins by David Roux (world premiere)
Maynila Sa Mga Kuko Ng Liwanag by Lino Brocka
Ruben Brandt, Collector by Milorad Krstic (world premiere)
Se7en by David Fincher
Searching by Aneesh Chaganty
The Equalizer 2 by Antoine Fuqua
Un Nemico Che Ti Vuole Bene by Denis Rabaglia (world premiere)
Was Uns Nicht Umbringt by Sandra Nettelbeck (world premiere)
International Competition
A Family Tour by Liang Ying (world premiere)
A Land Imagined by Siew Hua Yeo (world premiere)
Alice T. by Radu Muntean (world premiere)
Diane by Kent Jones
Genèse by Philippe Lesage (world premiere)
Glaubenberg by Thomas Imbach (world premiere)
Gangyun Hotel (Hotel By The River) by Hong Sangsoo (world premiere)
La Flor by Mariano Llinás
M by Yolande Zauberman (world premiere)
Menocchio by Alberto Fasulo (world premiere)
Ray and Liz by Richard Billingham (world premiere)
Sibel by Çagla Zencirci and Guillaume Giovanetti (world premiere)
Tarde Para Morir Joven by Dominga Sotomayor (world premiere)
Wintermärchen by Jan Bonny (world premiere)
Yara by Abbas Fahdel (world premiere)
Filmmakers of the Present Competition
All Good by Eva Trobisch
Ceux Qui Travaillent by Antoine Russbach (world premiere)
Chaos by Sara Fattahi (world premiere)
Closing Time by Nicole Vögele (world premiere)
Familia Sumergida by Maria Alché (world premiere)
Fausto by Andrea Bussmann (world premiere)
L’Epoque by Matthieu Bareyre (world premiere)
Likemeback by Leonardo Guerra Serágnoli (world premiere)
Siyabonga by Joshua Magor (world premiere)
Sophia Antipolis by Virgil Vernier (world premiere)
Suburban Birds by Sheng Qiu
Tegnap (Hier) by Bälint Kenyeres (world premiere)
Temporada by André Novais Oliveira (world premiere)
The Dive by Yona Rozenkier
Trote by Xacio Baño (world premiere)
The Locarno Film Festival takes place from 1-11 August. For more info: pardo.ch
John Bleasdale | @drjonty