Down River

Cinequest at festival midpoint

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photo courtesy of The Wife
photo courtesy of The Wife

The 2014 edition of Cinequest has emphasized comedy, and that has paid off with some of the festival’s biggest hits:

  • The Grand Seduction: Cinequest’s opening night film was this uproarious Canadian knee-slapper – a Waking Ned Devine with random acts of cricket.
  • Friended to Death: this sharply funny idie satirizes our obsession with social media. TMI becomes LOL.
  • Heavenly Shift: the hilariously dark (very dark) Hungarian comedy about a rogue ambulance crew with a financial incentive to deliver its patients dead on arrival.
  • Hunting Elephants: an Israeli caper comedy with Patrick Stewart (as you’ve never seen him).

The other most popular Cinequest hits have been the exquisite Polish drama Ida and the Canadian weeper Down River.  I also particularly like the Slovenian class room drama Class Enemy.

Most of these films are still scheduled to play in the last half of the festival.  Subject to Cinequest’s exhibition rights, I’m guessing that the most likely candidates for Cinequest’s Encore Day on Sunday, March 16 are Ida, Friended to Death, Down River, Hunting Elephants and Class Enemy.

This weekend at Cinequest

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Don't miss IDA at noon on Saturday
Don’t miss IDA at noon on Saturday

My feature articles and comments on individual Cinequest movies and my feature articles are linked at CINEQUEST 2014.  Follow @themoviegourmet on twitter for real-time Cinequest coverage.  Here are my tips for Cinequest films this weekend:

TODAY

Heavenly Shift: I howled at this hilariously dark (very dark) Hungarian comedy about a rogue ambulance crew with a financial incentive to deliver its patients dead on arrival. North American premiere at 2:30 PM.

SATURDAY

A special screening of Fruitvale Station: the masterpiece debut from Bay Area filmmaker Ryan Coogler, introduced by LA Times and NPR Morning Edition movie critic Kenneth Turan.

Haven’t seen it, but the chatter in festival queues is universally positive for the Canadian weeper Down River.

Words and Pictures: I haven’t seen this romantic comedy starring Clive Owen and the ever-radiant Juliette Binoche as sparring teachers, but it figures to be a crowd pleaser.

SUNDAY

A noon screening is your last chance to see one of the very best films at Cinequest, the polish drama Ida, which won the International Critics’ Award at the Toronto International Film Festival.  Justifiably very popular at Cinequest.

Hunting Elephants: I haven’t seen this Israeli caper comedy starring Patrick Stewart, but it’s picked up positive buzz at the festival.

Here’s the 2014 Cinequest program and ticket information.