Most of the big movies of the fall have now premiered (although a few obvious exceptions remain to be unveiled) after their bows at Venice, Telluride and Toronto.
Now it’s time for smaller, regional festivals to help further sort the wheat from the chaff. The New York Film Festival (NYFF), which kicks off this week, provides a perfect bridge to this next stage of the season. The festival features no world premieres, just a tightly curated slate of what the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s programmers determine are among the year’s best.
/Film will be in attendance at the New York Film Festival catching up with some of 2018’s best festival bows. But for those who can’t make it up to the Big Apple, you can craft a miniature festival in your own living room based around the NYFF lineup. Here are 10 films you can stream to get you hyped up for some of the eventual release of the festival’s selections. (All streaming availability is accurate as of publication and subject to change.)
The Favourite (Opening Night)
A pioneer of the so-called “Greek Weird Wave,” director Yorgos Lanthimos has recently turned his talents to depicting the absurdities of the English-speaking world. His latest project appears to be his most Anglo to date – The Favourite, a send-up of British royal manners with a venomous bite. He’s got one heck of a cast to play a trio of rivals in the court of Queen Anne: Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz and Olivia Colman, all of whom generated serious buzz at the film’s Venice and Telluride premieres. The question now isn’t whether they are deserving of their awards chatter but in what category Fox Searchlight will position them to best capitalize on it.
Can’t make it to NYFF? Watch this at home: Since you’ve probably seen Lanthimos’ English-language breakout The Lobster, dip into his truly surreal Greek output. While Dogtooth earned an Osacr nomination, Alps is a personal favorite of mine. Lanthimos’ absurd look at how people outsource grief and emotional labor in dark times is social commentary well ahead of its time. (available for free to subscribers of Amazon Prime and Fandor)
At Eternity’s Gate (Closing Night)
A year after stealing our hearts in The Florida Project, Willem Dafoe is back to break our hearts as Vincent van Gogh in At Eternity’s Gate. The legendary actor tackles the final days of the iconic painter in the latest film by Julian Schnabel, a fixture of the visual art world. Though perhaps better known for his work in the gallery art space, Schnabel has made his mark with just his handful of films. Seeing one painter make a movie about another painter ought to be interesting, at the very least.
Can’t make it to NYFF? Watch this at home: Schanbel’s first film Basquiat, about the eponymous postmodern artist, might be a more apt comparison for At Eternity’s Gate. But I can’t resist the opportunity to recommend The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Schnabel’s buoyantly humanistic tribute to our ability to overcome adversity. His answer to the challenge of depicting the inner world of a man who can only communicate through blinking one eye ought to inspire filmmakers everywhere. (available to rent on Amazon and iTunes)
(Excerpt) Read More at: SlashFilm.com
