10 Most Anticipated Holdovers of 2020
Ten films that played at festivals or were released in their home countries in 2019 I can’t wait to see in 2020.
Female friendship movies are my absolute favourite. An adaptation of Emma Jane Unsworth’s fantastic book about two hard-partying best friends whose lifestyle is starting to tip from fun into alcoholism Animals played at Sundance 2019 and already opened in the UK, but no North American release date yet, alas.
An Easy Girl dir. Rebecca Zlotowski
I’ve been a fan of Zlotowski since her debut film Dear Prudence. An Easy Girl has Zlotowski taking a look at the dark side of the Cannes Film Festival. The film follows a teenager who becomes entranced with the lifestyle of her older cousin who secretly works as a prostitute and helps introduce her to her wealthy older patrons. The film played out of competition at Cannes and won an award there.
Flatland dir. Jenna Cato Bass
Bass is a rising star in South African cinema and also co-wrote the Kenyan lesbian romance Rafiki. Flatland is a modern western about a policewoman who returns to her childhood home to solve a murder caused by a shy woman now on the run with her pregnant friend.
I Was at Home, But… dir. Angela Schanelec
Schanelec became only the 4th woman ever to win Best Director at the Berlin Film Festival for this film which makes it intriguing enough to me on its own. The plot is about a young girl who goes missing and then abruptly reappears and I’ve heard extremely devise reviews from people calling it a masterpiece and others calling it pretentious garbage. Can’t wait to make up my mind which it is for myself.
Jezebel dir. Numa Perrier
The film was plucked from obscurity by Ava DuVernay’s distribution company ARRAY which promotes indies directed by women and men of colour. Jezebel follows a young woman who spends the last days of her mother’s life forging a new path as a sex phone operator. Reviews have been great. Can’t wait to watch.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire dir. Céline Sciamma
Okay, so maybe this is technically a 2019 release. After premiering at Cannes the film received a token release in North America for Oscar qualification (it was completely shut out, boo). However Neon is holding out on a wider roll out until February 2020. And while I’ve seen it already I can’t wait to bask in the film, so clearly Sciamma’s best work to date, once more.
Proxima dir. Alice Winocour
I’ve been so intrigued by Winocour ever since her weird, darkly sexy, historical romance Augustine (she also co-wrote the 2015 film Mustang). In Proxima she examines an astronaut’s decision to leave her daughter behind for a year as she pursues a space mission. Space, motherhood and Eva Green? Sign me up.
Radioactive dir. Marjane Satrapi
Satrapi (yes, that Marjane Satrapi) tackles the life of Polish-French scientist Marie Curie which Rosamund Pike playing Curie. I’m not always a fan of biopics but Satrapi has an intriguing eye and the cast (including Anya Taylor-Joy and Same Riley) is pretty fab.
I enjoyed Gavron’s beautiful look at the fight for suffrage in the UK (the aptly titled Suffragette). And I’ve heard nothing but good things about her latest film, Rocks, about a teenager (nicknamed Rocks) who suddenly finds herself in charge of herself and her younger brother after being abandoned by her parents. This wasn’t on my radar until several people recommended it to me, and when that many people start talking about a film I pay attention.
Saint Maud dir. Rose Glass
I am a scaredy cat when it comes to horror films, but the reviews for Saint Maud are so promising that I can’t help wanting to watch this one. A film about a pious nurse who takes things too far when trying to save the soul of her dying patient, the film also co-stars Jennifer Ehle (who is best known as Elizabeth Bennet in the ‘95 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice). Ehle is a lovely warm presence in every film she’s a part of and maybe one of the most underrated actresses of all time imo. Is Saint Maud the movie that will bring her more widespread recognition? I hope so!
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