Distortion is here – resistance is largely futile but for those seeking refuge from the mayhem, you could do worse than a spell in the darkness congregated with kindred spirits around a projected beam of light. This week Danish cinemas finally play host to It Follows, David Robert Mitchell’s much anticipated horror film which, by clever appropriation of J-horror tropes, has had critics in rapture since its premiere in Cannes over a year ago. Find out how it fared with me in this week’s review.
Also released is the imaginatively titled spy comedy Spy, a Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids) vehicle that concerns a mousey CIA analyst who goes undercover to expose a deadly arms dealer and thus save the world. Co-stars Jason Statham and Jude Law – advance word is positive.
Over at Cinemateket there’s a continuing series showcasing the considerable talents of director Denis Villeneuve, who has recently been tasked, by Ridley Scott, with delivering a sequel to the seminal sci-fi classic Blade Runner. During CPH:PIX last year, I caught Enemy, Villeneuve’s Kafka-esque nightmare that invokes David Lynch’s Lost Highway and Hitchcock’s Vertigo, among other paranoid classics, to delicious effect. Jake Gyllenhall plays a history teacher who discovers he has a doppelgänger playing bit-parts in Hollywood productions and decides to investigate. It’s a surreal crypto-drama that had me picking over its puzzles for days afterwards, staying with me even until now. Cinemateket gives Enemy an official Danish premiere playing once a day from Thursday for two weeks – check the program for details at dfi.dk/Filmhuset.
Finally, in its ongoing Sunday series of Danish cinema with English subtitles, Cinemateket is screening Kapgang (Speed Walking), the latest offering from director Neils Arden Oplev (The Girl With A Dragon Tattoo). Martin, 14, is preparing to take communion for the first time when his mother suddenly dies. Her death then triggers a chain of events that affect everyone in the small community. Lost in their own grief, neither Martin’s dad nor his older brother are capable of giving him comfort – and so he must find his own way. The film starts 14:15 and an extra 40kr will get you coffee and a pastry.
