Sun. Oct 5, 6:30 pm, Centre for Arts
Tue. Oct 7, 4:00 pm, Centre for Arts

USA

Dir: François Girard

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Newcomer Garrett Wareing goes toe-to-toe with Dustin Hoffman in this rousing story of a determined, angel-voiced orphan who clashes with the strict choir master of the prestigious American Boychoir School. Acclaimed director François Girard (The Red Violin) uses the sublime choral performances to heighten the spiralling drama in this fierce battle of wills. Kathy Bates, Eddie Izzard and Debra Winger also star.

CLOUDS OF SILS MARIA

(Sils Maria)

Thu. Oct 2, 9:15 pm, Centre for Arts
Fri. Oct 3, 3:30 pm, Centre for Arts

France / Switzerland / Germany
DIR: Olivier Assayas

Film Blog | Trailer | Review

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Juliette Binoche is riveting as an actor asked to revisit the play that made her a star 20 years before—but this time she is to essay the role of the older woman, not the ingenue... "Though deceptively casual on its surface... [Olivier Assayas' film is] a multi-layered, femme-driven meta-fiction that pushes all involved—including next-gen starlets Kristen Stewart and Chloë Grace Moretz—to new heights."—Variety

Wed. Oct 1, 9:00 pm, Playhouse
Fri. Oct 3, 11:15 am, Intl Village 10

Canada

Dir: Charles Binamé

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An eminent psychiatrist disappears from his office. The last person to have seen him is Michael, a handsome and seemingly innocuous patient, played here by Xavier Dolan in a tour-de-force performance. The director of the hospital, Dr. Green (Bruce Greenwood), investigates the disappearance but instead uncovers Michael's dark secrets. Charles Binamé directs this taut psychological drama with a sure and subtle hand.

Thu. Sep 25, 9:30 pm, Centre for Arts
Thu. Oct 2, 3:15 pm, Centre for Arts

Fri. Oct 10, 9:30 pm, Centre for Arts

USA

DIR: Bennett Miller | Trailer | Review

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Employing an unsettling mix of suspense and absurdity, Bennett Miller (Capote) delves into the bizarre true story of Olympic wrestling brothers (Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo) and their well-heeled, mentally imbalanced sponsor (Steve Carell, combining arrogance and anguish to monstrous effect). "Powerfully disturbing... This insidiously gripping psychological drama is a model of bleak, bruising, furiously concentrated storytelling." —Variety.

Winner, Best Director, Cannes 2014.

THE GOLDEN ERA

(Huangjin Shidai)

Sat. Sep 27, 6:00 pm, Centre for Arts

Hong Kong / China
Dir: Ann Hui

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Fresh from Venice, Ann Hui’s masterly new film tells the life story of China’s greatest modern woman writer Xiao Hong, brilliantly played by Tang Wei. In the background, Japan’s invasion of China in the 1930s. In the foreground, a woman in love with a feckless man, negotiating the sexual and political rivalries of her day with honesty, clarity and beauty. (Tony Rayns)

LIFE OF RILEY

(Aimer, boire et chanter)

Sat. Oct 4, 1:30 pm, Playhouse
Fri. Oct 10, 6:30 pm, Playhouse

France

DIR: Alain Resnais | Trailer

North American Premiere

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Alain Resnais' swan song is a wry, deliberately heightened adaptation of Alan Ayckbourn's play. The unseen Riley is dying, but he still possesses the power to disrupt the marriages of his friends (Sabine Azéma, Sandrine Kiberlain, André Dussollier, Hippolyte Girardot). "This joyous yet melancholic effort... charts the woes of middle-class couples coping with problematic love lives, solitude and death..."—Hollywood Reporter.

Winner, Alfred Bauer Prize, Berlin 2014.

Fri. Oct 3, 1:00 pm, Centre for Arts
Wed. Oct 8, 6:00 pm, Centre for Arts

Spain

DIR: David Trueba | Official Website

Classification: 14A (sexually suggestive scene)

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Spain, 1966. A hapless English teacher (Javier Cámara) hits the road for the strawberry fields of Almeria, hoping to meet his idol John Lennon. David Trueba's whimsical dramatic comedy is delightfully unpredictable. "This small gem offers a lovely evocation of Spain as well as a touching tribute to an unforgettable moment in time..."—Hollywood Reporter.

Winner, Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Goya Awards 2014.

Mon. Sep 29, 6:30 pm, Playhouse

Canada / France / Germany

DIR: David Cronenberg | Trailer

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Perverse and playful, David Cronenberg’s merciless satire takes dead aim at the Hollywood glitterati’s vanities, psychoses and foolish belief that the past can be rewritten. A powerhouse ensemble—John Cusack, Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska and Robert Pattinson—brings Cronenberg’s glamourous grotesques to life. "Mulholland Drive, Sunset Boulevard and The Player wrapped up into one darkly comic, Gothic-tinged package." —Screen.

Winner, Best Actress (Julianne Moore), Cannes 2014.

Sun. Sep 28, 9:15 pm, Centre for Arts
Wed. Oct 1, 3:00 pm, Centre for Arts

USA

DIR: Jason Reitman | Website & Trailer

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Jason Reitman's Men, Women & Children follows the story of a group of high-school teenagers and their parents as they attempt to navigate the many ways the Internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives. The film attempts to stare down social issues such as video-game culture, anorexia, infidelity, fame-hunting, and the proliferation of illicit material on the Internet.

Mon. Sep 29, 9:00 pm, Playhouse

Canada / France

DIR: Xavier Dolan | Trailer

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The prolific Xavier Dolan reveals a newfound maturity with this bittersweet account of Diane (Anne Dorval, channelling Gena Rowlands) and her delinquent son (Antoine-Olivier Pilon, magnetic). Having abandoned the matricidal posturing of I Killed My Mother, Dolan sides with Diane on this occasion, crafting "a funny, heartbreaking and, above all, original work..."—Variety.

Winner, Prix du Jury (ex aequo), Cannes 2014.

Fri. Oct 3, 6:15 pm, Centre for Arts
Sun. Oct 5, 11:00 am, SFU-GCA

UK

DIR: Lone Scherfig | Trailer

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What starts out as an engaging stroll among Britain’s so-called "best and brightest" takes a shocking, violent turn in this penetrating, provocative dissection of class entitlement (and the sexism and racism that goes with it). Intense and suspenseful, the latest from Lone Scherfig (An Education) also functions as an impressive showcase for a whole gallery of brilliant up and coming actors.

Sat. Sep 27, 11:30 am, Centre for Arts

Japan

DIR: Takahata Isao | Facebook | Teaser

Classification: G (violence)

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Discovered inside a luminous bamboo stalk, a magical newborn lights up the lives of a childless couple—and perplexes them with the lightning speed with which she crawls, walks, talks and transforms into a charming young lady. Studio Ghibli’s other anime master Takahata Isao (Grave of the Fireflies, Pom Poko) bows out with a tender, joyful, exquisitely crafted folk tale for all ages.

WILD TALES

(Relatos salvajes)

Sat. Oct 4, 6:00 pm, Centre for Arts
Mon. Oct 6, 3:30 pm, Centre for Arts

Argentina / Spain

DIR: Damián Szifrón | Trailer | Review

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For sheer entertainment value, you’ll be hard-pressed to beat this outrageous anthology film. One of Cannes' most buzzed about discoveries, Damián Szifrón’s third feature plays like a calling card from a preposterously talented newcomer, it’s so chock-full of crazy ideas and verve. "Delicious, horrible, scary and scabrous... Szifrón brings off a very difficult trick: making something genuinely funny and genuinely scary at the same time." —Guardian.

WINTER SLEEP

(Kis uykusu)

Wed. Oct 1, 8:00 pm, Centre for Arts
Sun. Oct 5, 1:00 pm, Playhouse

Turkey / Germany / France

DIR: Nuri Bilge Ceylan

Trailer | Review | Interview with Director

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"Nuri Bilge Ceylan [Once Upon a Time in Anatolia] is at the peak of his powers with [this] richly engrossing and ravishingly beautiful magnum opus... [The film] tunnels into the everyday existence of a middle-aged former actor turned comfortably situated hotel owner—and emerges with a multifaceted study of human frailty whose moral implications resonate far beyond its remote Turkish setting."—Variety.

Winner, Palme d'Or, Cannes 2014.

Sat. Oct 4, 7:00 pm, Vancity
Sun. Oct 5, 1:30 pm, Vancity

Netherlands / Belgium

DIR: Eugenie Jansen | Official Website

North American Premiere

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A daring formal experiment lies at the heart of this exploration of loss. Eugenie Jansen films her story—a young, half-Aboriginal girl copes with being transplanted from Australia to Belgium after her mother's death—in 50 fps 3D and uses 360-degree pans to evoke time's inexorable movement. The result is a boundary-pushing drama that is as affecting as it is bold in execution.

Sat. Sep 27, 2:15 pm, Intl Village 10
Sat. Oct 4, 4:00 pm, Intl Village 9
Sun. Oct 5, 7:30 pm, Intl Village 10

Brazil / France

DIR: Thierry Ragobert | Website & Trailer

Classification: G (no advisory)

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A circus-trained capuchin must quickly adapt to life in the wild when it suddenly finds itself lost in the Amazon rain forest. This unwitting, endlessly expressive little guide leads us through Thierry Ragobert's awe-inspiring, family-friendly docudrama, acquainting us with this lush wonderland’s exotic denizens and other breathtaking splendours. "A thrilling tale... the cinematography is exceptionally vivid throughout..."—Hollywood Reporter.

Tue. Sep 30, 5:45 pm, Intl Village 9

Germany / Denmark / Austria / Norway

DIR: Wim Wenders, Michael Glawogger, Michael Madsen, Robert Redford, Margreth Olin, Karim Aïnouz | Clip

North American Premiere

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Six stunning buildings, six auteurs and glorious 3D come together in this hymn to the art of architecture. The Berliner Philharmonie concert hall (Wim Wenders), California's Salk Institute (Robert Redford), the National Library in St. Petersburg (Michael Glawogger), Denmark's Halden prison (Michael Madsen), the Oslo Opera House (Margreth Olin) and the Pompidou in Paris (Karim Ainouz) are brought to life like never before.

Fri. Sep 26, 6:00 pm, Intl Village 9
Sun. Sep 28, 3:30 pm, Intl Village 9
Fri. Oct 3, 2:30 pm, Intl Village 10

France

DIR: Jean-Luc Godard | Trailer | Review

Interview with Director | Extended Trailer

Article

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"Jean-Luc Godard’s 3-D opus, was easily [Cannes’] defining event... Less a culmination of the polyphonic mode that is Late Godard than an acceleration, the film is a furiously associative meditation on humanity and history, cinematic and linguistic meaning, the world of nature and the nature of reality—all refracted through fragmentary episodes involving an adulterous couple and dog’s-eye-view roamings through a light-streaked forest."—Art Forum.

Winner, Prix du Jury (ex aequo), Cannes 2014.

COMING HOME

(Giu lai)

Thu. Sep 25, 1:45 pm, Centre for Arts
Wed. Oct 8, 8:45 pm, Centre for Arts

China

DIR: Zhang Yimou | Trailer | Review

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The radiant Gong Li is magnificent in this staggering period piece about a woman with Alzheimer's-like symptoms who anxiously awaits her husband's return despite the fact he's already come home to her. "Chinese master Zhang Yimou’s... family drama of guilt, love and reconciliation set during the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution [is] heartbreaking in its depiction of ordinary lives affected by political upheaval." —Variety.

FORCE MAJEURE

(Turist)

Fri. Sep 26, 12:00 pm, Centre for Arts
Mon. Oct 6, 6:30 pm, Centre for Arts

Sweden

DIR: Ruben Östlund | Trailer

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Echoing The Hunt's psychological intensity, Ruben Östlund’s riveting drama features another desperate man whose world crumbles around him. After an avalanche at a ski resort in the Alps, a family's narrow escape is overshadowed by husband/father Tomas' cowardice in the clutch. It seems that running for his (own) life is a slight his wife Ebba just can't shake. "Precisely calibrated... Visually stunning... Emotionally perceptive..." —Variety.

Winner, Grand Jury Prize, Nashville 2014.

Sat. Sep 27, 3:30 pm, Intl Village 9
Wed. Oct 1, 6:30 pm, Playhouse

USA

DIR: James Keach | Website & Trailer

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Singer and legendary guitarist Glen Campbell is so much more than just the purveyor of great tunes like "Wichita Lineman." When Campbell was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, director James Keach was given unfettered access to the singer during his farewell tour; the result is a remarkably musical testament to courage and determination that serves as the lead-in to VIFF's "Gentle on My Mind" sidebar.

Winner, Grand Jury Prize, Nashville 2014.

Sun. Oct 5, 4:30 pm, Intl Village 10
Tue. Oct 7, 9:15 pm, Centre for Arts

South Korea

DIR: Shim Sungbo | Trailer

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Co-written (and reputedly also supervised) by Bong Joon-ho, this is an exceptionally gripping story set at sea between Korea and China. A fishing-boat skipper is persuaded (against his better judgment) to smuggle a group of North Korean illegals ashore: what could possibly go wrong? Like Memories of Murder, this is based on a real incident notorious in Korea. (Tony Rayns)

Sun. Oct 5, 1:30 pm, Intl Village 8
Mon. Oct 6, 6:45 pm, Vancity

New Zealand

DIR: Gaylene Preston | Website & Trailer

Director’s Website | Article

International Premiere

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Set in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 Christchurch earthquakes, Gaylene Preston's docudrama tells the true stories of New Zealanders picking up the pieces and fully earns its tagline: "It's the aftershocks that run the deepest." Real news footage and recreated disaster sites are seamlessly blended in a moving tale of survival that "certainly pulls no punches."—New Zealand Herald.

THE LIBERATOR

(Libertador)

Sun. Sep 28, 3:00 pm, Centre for Arts
Sun. Oct 5, 9:15 pm, Centre for Arts

Venezuela / Spain

DIR: Alberto Arvelo | Trailer

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The extraordinary life of South American hero Simón Bolívar (the mesmerizing Édgar Ramírez, Carlos) is given appropriately epic treatment in Alberto Arvelo's sumptuously mounted period piece. Beginning in the early 1800s and spanning 30 years in the great revolutionary's struggles to free South Americans from the yoke of Spanish occupation, Arvelo's impressive achievement is a rousing and entertaining corrective to Bolívar's relative anonymity in North America.