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Showcase VIFF series

Showcase | VIFF 2022

Exceptional cinema that will resonate strongly with VIFF audiences.

Image: Before, Now & Then, VIFF 2022

Alcarràs

Dir. Carla Simón
120

Steeped in the warmth of summer and the sweetness of peaches, Alcarràs tells the tale of a family in Catalonia suddenly faced with eviction from the land they’ve farmed for generations. A bittersweet tale of love and family in a last idyllic summer.

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Before, Now & Then

Dir. Kamila Andini
103 min

Dreamlike, sensual, and intensely lyrical, Kamila Andini’s Indonesian 1960s period drama is a rare glimpse into the emotional life of a woman who escapes war and enters into the pampered existence of a passionless marriage.

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Black Ice

Dir. Hubert Davis
97 min

This sweeping dissection of systemic racism in Canadian hockey culture documents the personal stories of Black hockey players dealing with racism from fans, coaches, other players, and the institutional pressure to remain silent about their mistreatment.

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Boy From Heaven

Dir. Tarik Saleh
125 min

Adam, a young man studying at a leading religious institution in Egypt, becomes a pawn in the struggle between government spies and radical religious leaders. A shrewdly plotted thriller with a superbly expressive performance from Tawfeek Barhom.

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Brother

Dir. Clement Virgo
119 min

Against the backdrop of suburban Scarborough, two brothers strive to justify their mother’s sacrifices and realise their own ambitions. However, fate has other plans. An elegant and authoritative exploration of both violence and the healing process.

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Call Jane

Dir. Phyllis Nagy
121 min

A privileged housewife in 1968 Chicago finds herself at odds with the patriarchal medical establishment when she requires an abortion to save her life. A timely and relevant film about reproductive justice in the year that Roe v. Wade was overturned.

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Close

Dir. Lukas Dhont
105 min

Léo and Rémi's summertime adolescent friendship is scrutinized by their classmates, making Léo pull away in self-conscious fear. A stunningly lyrical tour de force that explores that explores the fragile nature of friendship and masculinity.

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Crystal Pite: Angels' Atlas

Dir. Chelsea McMullan
64 min

This sublime documentary captures the National Ballet of Canada's rebirth through their staging of Angels' Atlas—their final show before the pandemic shutdown in 2020 and their first performance when the company returned in November 2021.

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Emily

Dir. Frances O'Connor
130 min

In her impressive directorial debut, Frances O'Connor plausibly imagines how a shy, demure preacher's daughter (played by the sensational Emma Mackey) might come to write something as bold and primal as Wuthering Heights.

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Holy Spider

Dir. Ali Abbasi
117 min

In Mashhad, Iran, a serial killer known as The Spider has murdered over a dozen women. Rahimi, a journalist obsessed with finding the killer, soon finds a skewed social morality that praises the perpetrator and condemns his victims.

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Klondike

Dir. Maryna Er Gorbach
100 min

In 2014 in Ukraine's Donbass region, Irka, who's seven months pregnant, and her partner Tolik face the dilemma of whether or not to flee the area. As the tense, haunting, and tragic film unfolds, the conflict threatens to tear them apart.

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Motherhood

Dir. Ryuichi Hiroki
116 min

Ryuichi Hiroki’s film tells the story of a woman who loves her mother but can’t muster the same feelings for her daughter. Shot through with the spirit of Greek tragedy, Hiroki creates a rich atmosphere of psychological danger.

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Nostalgia

Dir. Mario Martone
118 min

Returning to the Naples of his childhood, Felice (Pierfrancesco Favino) is overwhelmed by memories of his adolescence both joyful and painful. He is compelled to stay to try to make peace with his best friend from those days, now a feared crime boss.

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Pacifiction

Dir. Albert Serra
165 min

De Roller, the High Commissioner of French Polynesia, has a problem on his hands: the French Marines have arrived on the islands, and their presence coincides with rumours that nuclear testing is soon to commence. A lush and moody delight.

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Peter Von Kant

Dir. François Ozon
84 min

This gender-reversed take on Fassbinder's The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant sees director Peter suffer the ultimate heartbreak when his young lover dumps him. Features scene-stealing turns from Stéfan Crépon, Hannah Schygulla, and Isabelle Adjani.

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R.M.N.

Dir. Cristian Mungiu
125 min

Director Cristian Mungiu takes the bull by the horns in this gripping smalltown drama which confronts xenophobia, globalization, and economic injustice head on. Matthias returns home to Transylvania to find the community up in arms.

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Tori and Lokita

Dir. Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
88 min

In the latest from the Dardenne brothers (Two Days, One Night) we are invested in the plight of two West African immigrants to Europe, children who pass themselves off as siblings but whose fate hangs by a slender thread. The movie pummels the heart.

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Viking

Dir. Stéphane Lafleur
104 min

When the first manned mission to Mars hits turbulence due to personality clashes amongst the crew, the higher-ups devise a bizarre solution involving a simulacrum and surrogates. As the deadpan absurdity escalates, Viking mines poignancy from folly.

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