Wanting to start your viewing queue for HIFF40 and don’t know when to start? Are you interested in seeing some award-winning and daring films straight from major film festivals like Venice, Toronto and Cannes and watch them in the comfort of your own home? Here are 5 films that you should check out using your HIFF40 ALL-ACCESS PASS!
NIGHT OF THE KINGS
France, Cote D’Ivoire, Canada, Senegal
A young man is sent to “La Maca,” a prison off the Ivory Coast and deep in a remote jungle, ruled by its inmates. As tradition goes with the rising of the red moon, he is designated by the Boss to be the new “Roman” and must tell a story to the other prisoners. Learning what fate awaits him, he begins to narrate the mystical life of the legendary outlaw named “Zama King” and has no choice but to make his story last until dawn.
NEW ORDER
Mexico, France
Set in a near-future Mexico City while protests rage, NEW ORDER focuses on a high society family preparing for a wedding when a former employee seeking emergency medical funds intrudes on the festivities. But soon the party is unable to keep the reckoning at bay, followed by a swift disintegration of law and order defined first by class lines. This compelling dystopian social thriller from AFTER LUCIA director Michel Franco, the film won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at the recently concluded Venice Film Festival.
MY LOVER, MY DONKEY & I
France
Antoinette, a school teacher, is looking forward to her long planned summer holidays with her secret lover Vladimir, who is the father of one of her students. When she learns that Vladimir cannot come because his wife organized a surprise trekking in the Cévennes National Park with their daughter and a donkey to carry their load, Antoinette decides to follow their track, by herself, with her own stubborn donkey. What could possibly go wrong?
SUMMER OF 85
France
When 16-year-old Alexis capsizes off the coast of Normandy, 18-year-old David heroically saves him. Alexis has just met the friend of his dreams. But will the dream last for more than one summer? SUMMER OF 85, by the prestigious and prolific director François Ozon, is a passionate drama with a nostalgic breeze that captures the era and a sexy throwback to films like THE SUMMER OF ’42 and Ozon’s own SWIMMING POOL.
UNDINE
Germany
The latest from Christian Petzold (TRANSIT), UNDINE is a modern day fairy tale that weaves together human drama with just the right amount of magical realism. The mysterious Undine, tells her boyfriend that he simply cannot leave her. As she has explained, if he does, he must die, it is the rule. Unphased by this threat, he leaves. Whilst a fit of despair she meets a new man. Perhaps the man of her dreams. But will her unfinished business come back to haunt them? Lead actress Paula Beer won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at this year’s Berlinale.
HIFF40 Limited and All-Access Passes provide the best value to view as many films online via HIFF’s streaming platform. Buy your pass today!
