Back at IFFR 2020: the VPRO Preview Day and the VPRO Review Day. On both days, VPRO members and their guests can attend consecutive, exclusive screenings of a list of films from IFFR 2020. These festival highlights are selected by IFFR programmers and the editors of VPRO Cinema, and screen from 10:00 to 23:30 hours. A guaranteed hit.
There are two festival days to choose from. The VPRO Preview Day is on Thursday 23 January in Pathé Schouwburgplein. Would you prefer Friday 31 January? Then visit the VPRO Review Day in LantarenVenster. Or go to the new VPRO Review: Morning/Afternoon/Evening to see two of the six films.
The full programme can be seen from the start of January at IFFR.com/VPRO2020. Note: all films are spoken in their original language. Most films have English subtitles, however some only have Dutch subtitles.
Tickets for the VPRO Preview Day 2020 are €47
Programme
10:00 – 10:10 (Pathé 1)
10:15 – 10:25 (Pathé 2 & 7)
Opening
10:10 – 11:48 (Pathé 1)10:25 – 12:03 (Pathé 2 & 7)
Adam by Maryam Touzani
Maryam Touzani, 2019, Morocco, France, 98’
Reluctantly giving in to the urging of her eight-year-old daughter, widow Abla agrees to temporarily take in young, pregnant, unmarried Samia. Inside the walls of Abla’s small apartment and adjoining bakery, a relationship develops between three very different women in this modest, poignant feature debut.
12:45 – 14:45 (Pathé 1)13:00 – 15:00 (Pathé 2 & 7)Babyteeth by Shannon Murphy
Shannon Murphy, 2019, Australia, 120’
Loving, tragic portrait of a terminally ill Australian teenager who falls in love with a no-good drugs dealer. A subtle, comic debut about love, pain and letting go, with a stunning performance from Eliza Scanlen in the lead role as a teenage girl who can all too briefly become a young woman.
15:00 – 16:25 (Pathé 1)15:15 – 16:40 (Pathé 2 & 7)
Paradise Drifters by Mees Peijnenburg
Mees Peijnenburg, 2020, Netherlands, 85’
Yousef has no family. Chloe’s teen pimp got her pregnant. Lorenzo wants to make a quick buck smuggling drugs geld. The leads in this raw road movie, intensely portrayed by the young cast, are desperate for help and love. A film that deals out hard blows whilst steering them towards the liberating finale.
16:40 – 18:33 (Pathé 1)16:55 – 18:48 (Pathé 2 & 7)The Wild Goose Lake by Diao Yi’nan
Diao Yi’nan, 2019, China, France, 113’
This stylised neo-noir dismembers a straightforward plot about a gang leader and a prostitute on the run into its almost abstract separate components. The heart of modern-day China lies hidden in the chaos that ensues. Meanwhile, Diao Yi’nan serves up one bloody, neon-lit visual tour de force after another.
20:05 – 21:47 (Pathé 1)20:20 – 22:02 (Pathé 2 & 7)Les misérables by Ladj Ly
Ladj Ly, 2019, France, 102’
The day after the 2018 World Cup Final, won by France, tensions rise in Parisian banlieue Montfermeil. During cop Stéphane’s first day on the beat, some gypsies demand their stolen lion cub back and young Issa causes problems again. Impressive, explosive debut, partly inspired by the riots of 2005.
22:05 – 23:30 (Pathé 1)22:20 – 23:45 (Pathé 2 & 7)
Fire Will Come by Oliver Laxe
Oliver Laxe, 2019, Spain, France, Luxembourg, 85’
Convicted arsonist Amador returns to his remote village in the mountainous Spanish region of Galicia. His mother is glad he’s back, but the other villagers don’t trust him. A raging fire breaks out – but did he start it? Or are the property developers destroying this impoverished rural community?