White God (Feher Isten) Review

Are you ready for the dawn of the dawn of the planet of the dogs? Featuring a cast of hundreds of pooches unleashed on city streets, White God is a powerful, emotional and ultimately hilarious dog apocalypse.

When 13 year old Lili is forced to get rid of her best friend and beloved mutt Hagen, it begins a story of horror and heartbreak for both the girl and her dog. Intercutting between the increasingly brutal treatment that Hagen finds himself at the hands of, and Lili's descent into teen rebellion as a response to the loss of her dog, White God is like Lassie Come Home on steroids.

The real star of White Dog is the dog Hagen, who turns from loveable pet into a transformed monster by the end. It is heart breaking to witness the level of cruelty some men are capable of and Hagen goes through hell in the film. The animal performance is astounding from the desperation in his eyes to the wild fury and savagery he demonstrates in later scenes.

It is the final act that elevates White God into something truly special. Man's best friend becomes man's worst nightmare in this brilliant but barking mad set piece. The conventions of the zombie movie and the serial killer slasher get dished out, and you are guaranteed to be howling in your seat in the final scenes.

Furiously entertaining with a perfect ending, White God is like 280 Dogs Later; an underdog story with some serious bite.

White God was the winner of the Un Certain Regard award at Cannes 2014 and is playing at the BFI London Film Festival 2014 at the following times:

Oct 10th 12.45 pm Vue West End Screen 7

Oct 12th 8.30pm Odeon Covent Garden Screen 1

Oct 13th 6.30pm Curzon Mayfair Cinema Screen 1 

Buy tickets from 18th September.

More on the BFI London Film Festival 2014

More on the Cannes Film Festival 2014

Reviews of other films being screened at the festival:

Timbuktu 

Wild Tales (Relatos Salvajes) 

The Blue Room (La Chambre Bleue) 

The Salvation 

Foxcatcher

Mr Turner

Goodbye to Language (Adieu au Langage)

BFI London Film Festival 2014 Official Competition

The BFI have released the list of films that will be competing for the Best Film Award at the London Film Festival 2014. It is of course a diverse bunch. Interestingly, though I saw a few of the Gala screening films at Cannes 2014, I only saw one of these films at the festival. That film was Timbuktu  and was a huge surprise to me. Here is the full list and you can find much further detail at the BFI London Film Festival website. 

Out of this bunch, the ones I'm most intrigued by are Dearest, Girlhood, The Keeping Room and Son of a Gun. However, if any of these are as surprising as Timbuktu, then this will be a very exciting competition.

Dearest 

This deeply moving drama charts the turmoil of a Chinese couple whose child is abducted. This one, based on true details of real life kidnappings, will be heavy.

The Duke of Burgundy

 
Peter Strickland’s new film is a bold and sensual exploration of the power dynamic between two women who live cut off from the outside world. This is from the guy who gave us Berberian Sound Studio so will undoubtedly be a bit odd.

The Falling

In 1969, a mysterious fainting sickness overtakes an English all-girl school. This is from Carol Morley, the director of Dreams of a Life and stars Game of Thrones’ own Arya Stark: aka Maisie Williams.

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night

A mysterious female vampire stalks the streets of a deadbeat town in this arresting debut. An Iranian vampire Western in black and white? Colour me intrigued.

Girlhood

Céline Sciamma’s triumphant third film is a beautifully observed examination of a young girl’s search for identity in the underprivileged suburbs of Paris. It’s from the director of the excellent Tomboy, but sadly is in now way a sequel to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood.

The Keeping Room

On the American frontier a young woman is forced to go to any means to defend her kin from the ravages of the barbaric outside world. From the director of Harry Brown, and starring Brit Marling and Hailee Steinfeld. Yes please.

Leviathan

Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Cannes award winner is a striking attack on corrupt politics set on Russia’s northwest coastline. This won the best screenplay award at Cannes but unfortunately I didn’t get to see it.

The New Girlfriend

François Ozon’s delicious new drama is a smart and sly satire – with some jaw-dropping twists – about gender, class and consumerism.

Phoenix

A concentration camp survivor undergoes reconstructive surgery and embarks on a search for her husband in postwar Germany.

The President

A provocative and disquieting parable about a deposed president sheltering a child as they travel across country. From Iranian director Moshen Makhmalbaf.

Son of a Gun

A smart heist thriller about a tough young hoodlum who teams up with a ruthless con and finds himself attracted to a smart, street-savvie young woman. After David Michod's Animal Kingdom and The Rover, I'm very excited to see another scorching Australian thriller making a splash internationally. Stars Ewan McGregor.

Timbuktu 

In Abderrahmane Sissako’s stunning new film, residents of a Mali town struggle to cope with the imposition of Sharia Law by radical Islamist invaders. This was the first film I got to see at Cannes 2014 and I was pretty blown away by its sense of humour when dealing with such an infuriating, challenging subject. Click the title for my review.

What tickles your fancy out of this lot?

More on the BFI London Film Festival 2014 

BFI London Film Festival 2014 Gala Screenings

The full programme for the London Film Festival has just been announced and there are a huge number of films to be very excited about. First up, the galas are ridiculously exciting. I was lucky enough to see some of these at Cannes this year. Click the titles for my reviews of Mr Turner, Wild Tales and The Salvation. 

Here is the list of galas in full taken from the BFI London Film Festival website, where you will also find the remainder of the programme.

I also saw Foxcatcher at Cannes. It is an unbelievably gripping film with a trio of exceptional performances from Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo and most surprisingly Steve Carrell. My review is coming soon.

The films I’m most excited to see from this list are Whiplash, Mommy and Fury. However, for those who have not yet seen Wild Tales, this film was my favourite from Cannes 2014 and is an absolute must-see!

Opening Night Gala: The Imitation Game

The life of Alan Turing, the codebreaker who helped turn the tide of WWII. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Closing Night Gala: Fury

David Ayer’s brilliant action drama tells the story of US soldiers and the demons they face down as they drive their tank through occupied Europe during WWII. Great cast!


American Express Gala: Foxcatcher

A riveting, tense and unsettling exploration of the power of money and obsession from the acclaimed director of Capote and Moneyball. Must see for Steve Carrell’s performance!


Accenture Gala: Whiplash

A gifted young drummer finds himself challenged by a brilliant mentor intent on pushing his student to greatness. Stars Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons.


Virgin Atlantic Gala: Men, Women & Children

Jason Reitman explores the way the modern technologies both enhance and hinder our lives and relationships in this cross-generational comedy drama.


May Fair Hotel Gala: Wild

Reese Witherspoon impresses in this moving account of one woman’s attempt to hike the Pacific Crest Trail.


Centrepiece Gala Supported by the Mayor of London: Testament of Youth

Vera Brittain’s extraordinary life during WWII is explored in this magnificent period drama.


Festival Gala In association with Time Out: Mr Turner  

Mike Leigh’s Cannes-winning account of the later years of J. M. W. Turner, brilliantly played by Timothy Spall. Click the title for my review from Cannes 2014.


Archive Gala: The Battles of Coronel and Falkland Islands

This dramatic reconstruction of two decisive naval battles from the First World War is one of the finest films of the British silent era.


Debate Gala: Rosewater

Jon Stewart brilliantly tells the story of Maziar Bahari, the journalist who was detained for 188 days in Iran.


Dare Gala: Mommy

Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan impresses again with his latest award-winning exercise in stylistic and imaginative melodrama.


Love Gala: A Little Chaos

Kate Winslet plays a landscape gardener employed by King Louis XIV to transform the gardens at Versailles.

Laugh Gala: Wild Tales (Relatos Salvajes)

Six hilarious short stories combine to form a macabre tango at the gates of madness in this outrageous comedy about the trials of modern life. An absolute must see! Click the title for my review.


Thrill Gala: The Salvation 

Mads Mikkelsen does what a man’s gotta do in the lawless pioneer West in this violent and stylish, smørrebrød western. Check out my review by clicking the title.


Journey Gala in association with Sight & Sound: Winter Sleep 

The Palme d’Or-winner of Cannes 2014. Cult Gala: The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom 

Sonic Gala: Björk: Biophilia Live

Family Gala: Song of the Sea


What are you excited to see from this list? 


More on the BFI London Film Festival 2014 

BFI London Film Festival to close with Fury

What could be more exciting than The Imitation Game opening the BFI London Film Festival? Well apart from the prospect of most of London coming to a standstill and getting all quivery at the knees over Benedict Cumberbatch, it is the closing night film that has really got my motor running. The European Premiere of Fury from director David Ayer is rolling into Leicester Square on Sunday 19 October and promises to close the LFF with a spectacular bang.

As far as I’m concerned, Ayer hit a pretty major stumbling block with his last film Sabotage but before that he had written and directed one of my top 3 films of 2012, End of Watch. That film had also been screened at the London Film Festival and was an intense ride around the badass streets of LA with two cops in the thick of cartels and drug dealers. Swapping the cop car for a tank, Fury takes us back to World War 2, a subject Ayer hasn’t written about since U-571. 

Starring one of the most exciting casts of the year, Fury sees Brad Pitt, (a post-meltdown) Shia LaBeouf, Michael Peña, Jon Bernthal and Logan Lerman rolling around in a Sherman tank behind enemy lines in 1945 as the war is drawing to a close. I can’t say much for little Logan Lerman yet but the rest of that cast promise big things for this film. If Ayer can capture the horror of fighting in World War 2 as well as he captured the danger of being a cop on the streets of LA, Fury will be a belting way to close this year’s BFI London Film Festival. 

No doubt Pitt, Ayer and hopefully more of the stars of the film will attend the premiere and get their snaps taken on the red carpet while delighting fans with their smiles and regaling journalists with tales of not washing and living like soldiers while working in English fields on the film. If you can’t get to the London premiere, there will be simultaneous screenings in various cinemas across the country. 

Here is a snippet about the film from the BFI LFF website:
 
‘In Fury, it is April, 1945. As the Allies make their final push in the European Theatre, a battle-hardened army sergeant named Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) commands a Sherman tank and her five-man crew on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. Outnumbered and outgunned, and with a rookie soldier thrust into their platoon, Wardaddy and his men face overwhelming odds in their heroic attempts to strike at the heart of Nazi Germany.’

Festival Director Clare Stewart calls Fury a ‘resounding cinematic achievement. Rarely is a film so successful at balancing the human drama of war with such thrilling action sequences’. David Ayer says ‘It’s a true pleasure to be returning to England, where we shot the film – the fields of Oxfordshire and Bovingdon Airfield in Hertfordshire were our home for 12 weeks last year, so it’s something of a homecoming for us to present the movie at its European premiere’. 

Fury will be released across the UK on 24 October 2014. The 58th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express runs from Wednesday 8 October to Sunday 19 October. The full programme for the Festival will be announced on Wednesday 3 September and tickets for public booking will open on 18 September. 

Here is the trailer:

More on The BFI London Film Festival 2014.